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STATE  OF  ILLINOIS 


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STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 

FRANK  W.  DE  WOLF.  Director 


BULLETIN  No.  35 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS  IN  ILLINOIS  IN  1916 


UNDER  DIRECTION  OK  ERED  IT.  KAY 


Petroleum  in  Illinois  in  1916 
By  Fred  H.  Kay 

Parts  of  Saline,  Williamson,  Pope  and  Johnson  counties 

By  Albert  D.  Brokaw 

Parts  of  Williamson,  Union  and  Jackson  counties 

By  Stuart  St.  Glair 

The  Ava  area 
By  Stuart  St.  Glair 

The  Gentralia  area 
By  Stuart  St.  Clair 

Parts  of  Hardin,  Pope,  and  Saline  counties 
By  Charles  Butts 


WORK  IN  COOPERATION  WITH  U.  S.  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


PRINTED  BY  AUTHORITY  OF  THE  STATE  OF  ILLINOIS 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
URBANA 
1917 


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IMPORTANT 

The  Illinois  State  Geological  Survey  desires  to  assist 
the  oil  industry  to  the  fullest  extent.  To  this  end  it  is 
desirable  that  samples  of  drill  cuttings  be  saved  from 
each  screw-depth,  for  examination  by  Survey  men  who 
are  familiar  with  the  strata  of  the  region.  Driller’s  note¬ 
books  and  sample  sacks  will  be  furnished  upon  request. 

STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 
Urbana,  Illinois 


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STATE  OF  ILLINOIS 


STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


FRANK  W.  DE  WOLF.  Director 


BULLETIN  No.  35 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS  IN  ILLINOIS  IN  19IG 


UNDER  DIRECTION  OK  FRED  H.  KAY 


Petroleum  in  Illinois  in  1916 
By  Fred  H.  Kay 


Parts  of  Saline,  Williamson,  Pope  and  Johnson  counties 

By  Albert  D.  Brokaw 

Parts  of  Williamson,  Union  and  Jackson  counties 

By  Stuart  St.  Clair 


The  Ava  area 
By  Stuart  St.  Clair 


The  Centralia  area 
By  Stuart  St.  Clair 


Parts  of  Hardin,  Pope,  and  Saline  counties 
By  Charles  Butts 


WORK  IN  COOPERATION  WITH  U.  S.  GKOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


PRINTED  BY  AUTHORITY  OF  THE  STATE  OF  I  ILLINOIS 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 
UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
URBANA 
1917 


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REVIEW 

PR.E8S 


MCATOtOL 


STATE  GEOLOGICAL  COMMISSION 

Frank  O.  Lowden,  Chairman 
Governor  of  Illinois 

Thomas  C.  Chamberlin,  Vice-Chairman 

Edmund  J.  James,  Secretary 
President  of  the  University  of  Illinois 


Frank  W.  DeWolf,  Director 
Fred  H.  Kay,  Asst.  State  Geologist 


* 


LETTER  OF  TRANSMITTAL 


State  Geological  Survey 
University  of  Illinois,  January  26,  1917 

Governor  Frank  O.  Lowden ,  Chairman ,  and  Members  of  the  Geological 
Commission. 

Gentlemen :  I  submit  herewith  manuscript  of  reports  on  oil  investiga¬ 
tions  in  Illinois  in  1916,  and  recommend  their  publication  as  Bulletin  35. 

Because  of  its  importance,  part  of  this  bulletin  appeared  in  abbreviated 
form  as  an  Extract,  and  development  in  the  field  described  is  now  proceed¬ 
ing  according  to  recommendations.  The  demand  for  these  publications 
increases  constantly. 

Very  respectfully, 

Frank  W.  DeWolf,  Director 


CONTENTS 


PAGE 


Petroleum  in  Illinois  in  1916,  by  Fred  H.  Kay .  11 

Parts  of  Saline,  Johnson,  Pope,  and  Williamson  counties,  by 

Albert  D.  Brokaw .  19 

Parts  of  Williamson,  Union,  and  Jackson  counties,  by  Stuart 

St.  Clair .  39 

Ava  area,  by  Stuart  St.  Clair .  57 

Centralia  area,  by  Stuart  St.  Clair .  67 

Parts  of  Hardin,  Pope,  and  Saline  counties,  by  Charles  Butts.  .  75 


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PETROLEUM  IN  ILLINOIS  IN  1916 

By  Fred  H.  Kay 


OUTLINE 

PAGE 


General  review .  11 

Southeastern  Illinois .  12 

Cumberland,  Coles,  Clark,  Jasper,  and  Edgar  counties .  12 

Crawford  County .  13 

Lawrence  County .  13 

Wabash  County .  14 

South-central  Illinois .  14 

Macoupin  County .  14 

Clinton  County .  15 

Marion  County .  15 

Western  Illinois .  15 

Southern  Illinois .  16 

Northern  Illinois .  16 

Miscellaneous  drilling  .  17 

Summary  tables  .  17 

TABLES 

1.  Illinois  oil  production,  1905-1916 .  12 

2.  Fluctuation  in  prices  per  barrel  of  Illinois  petroleum,  1916 .  13 

3.  Monthly  record  of  wells  drilled  in  Illinois,  1916 .  18 

4.  County  record  of  wells  drilled  in  Illinois,  1916 .  18 


GENERAL  REVIEW 

In  spite  of  the  fact  that  nearly  twice  as  many  wells  were  drilled  in 
1916,  as  the  previous  year,  J.  D.  Northrup1  estimates  that  the  Illinois  pro¬ 
duction  for  1916  was  16,500,000  barrels,  as  compared  with  19,041,695 
barrels  for  the  year  1915.  This  represents  a  decline  of  about  13.3  per  cent 
as  compared  with  a  13  per  cent  reduction  for  the  year  1915.  Table  1  shows 
the  annual  production  and  value  of  Illinois  oil  from  1905  to  1916,  inclusive. 
According  to  present  estimates,  Illinois  remains  fourth  in  production  for 
1916,  owing  to  the  decline  in  the  yield  of  the  Louisiana  fields. 

The  year  1916  was  characterized  by  high  prices  which  resulted  in  a 
large  amount  of  development  work  and  wildcat  drilling.  The  decline  in 
prices,  beginning  August  first,  curbed  activity  slightly  during  the  fall  months, 
but  the  prices  at  the  end  of  the  year  and  the  general  outlook  are  very  en¬ 
couraging  to  oil  operators,  and,  unless  some  unforeseen  event  occurs,  ac- 

1Northrup,  J.  D.,  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  Press  Bulletin,  January  8,  1917. 

(11) 


12 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


tivity  will  continue  unabated.  Table  2  shows  the  fluctuation  in  price  per 
barrel  for  the  two  grades  of  Illinois  oil  for  the  year  1916.  In  1916  there 
were  1,469  wells  completed,  according  to  the  Oil  City  Derrick  and  the  Oil 


Table  1. — Illinois  oil  production ,  1905-1916 


Year 

Barrels 

Value 

Previous . 

6,576 

S  . 

1905 . 

181.084 

116,561 

1906 . 

4,379,050 

3,274,818 

1907 . 

24,281,973 

16,432,947 

1908 . 

33,686,238 

22,649.561 

.1909 . . . 

30,898,339 

19.788,864 

1910 . 

33,143,262 

19,669.383 

1911 . 

31,317,038 

19,734.339 

1912 . 

28.601,308 

24,332.605 

1913 . 

23,893.899 

30,971,910 

1914 . 

21,919,749 

25,426,179 

1915 . 

19,041,695 

18,655,850 

1916.  ...  (estimate)  . 

16,500,000 

27,060,000 

and  Gas  Journal.  Of  these  1.104,  or  75.1  per  cent  yielded  an  average  initial 
production  of  22.2  barrels  each;  36,  or  2.4  per  cent,  were  gas  wells;  and 
317,  or  21.5  per  cent,  were  dry.  During  the  year  1916  there  were  145  wells 
abandoned,  as  compared  with  155  wells  in  1915. 


SOUTHEASTERN  ILLINOIS 
Cumberland,  Coles,  Clark,  Jasper,  and  Edgar  counties 

Out  of  a  total  of  1,469  wells  drilled  in  Illinois  in  1916,  there  were 
307,  or  21  per  cent,  in  the  shallow-sand  field.  Clark  County  was  by  far 
the  most  active  part  of  the  shallow-sand  field,  with  256  wells  completed, 
showing  an  average  initial  production  of  14.6  barrels  per  well.  The  dis¬ 
covery  of  a  new  sand  in  the  northern  part  of  the  Clark  County  field  at  a 
depth  of  400  to  500  feet  created  great  activity  in  drilling  old  wells  deeper 
and  sinking  new  ones  between  old  locations. 

The  production  at  the  north  end  of  the  Clark  County  field  is  from 
beds  corresponding  to  the  McClosky  sand.  It  is  a  porous  dolomite  which 
varies  greatly  in  its  texture  and  consequently  in  its  productivity  from  place 
to  place.  Its  variable  nature  is  well  shown  in  areas  where  a  vacuum  has 
been  used  to  increase  production.  New  wells  drilled  between  old  locations 
frequently  disclose  the  absence  of  any  vacuum,  whereas  upon  drilling  the 
old  wells  deeper  the  vacuum  is  pronounced  and  even  troublesome. 


PETROLEUM  IN  ILLINOIS  IN  1916 


13 


Crawford  County 

In  1916  there  were  568  wells  drilled  in  Crawford  County,  as  compared 
with  215  in  1915.  Of  the  wells  drilled  in  1916  there  were  391  which  pro¬ 
duced  oil  with  an  average  yield  of  15.5  barrels.  Marked  activity  existed 
throughout  the  year  in  Honey  Creek  Township,  where  a  number  of  good 
producers  were  drilled.  In  this  area  an  initial  production  of  100  barrels 
was  not  uncommon.  The  production  is  from  the  Robinson  sand  which  is 
extremely  irregular  in  thickness  and  in  character. 


Table  2. — Fluctuation  in  prices  per  barrel  of  Illinois  petroleum,  1916 


1916 

Illinois 

Plymouth 

January  1  . 

$147 

$1.33 

January  3  . 

1.57 

•  •  •  *• 

January  21  . 

.... 

1.38 

January  27  . 

1.62 

1.43 

February  16 . 

1.72 

•  •  •  • 

March  6  . 

•  •  •  • 

1.53 

March  13 . 

.... 

1.58 

March  16 . 

1.82 

1.68 

July  28 . 

1.72 

1.58 

August  1 . 

1.62 

1.48 

August  3 . 

•  .  .  • 

1.38 

August  4 . 

1.52 

.... 

August  14 . 

1.47 

1.18 

August  17 . 

•  •  •  • 

1.08 

August  28 . 

•  .  •  • 

1.03 

November  18 . 

1.52 

.... 

November  30 . 

.... 

1.13 

December  13 . 

1.57 

1.23 

December  19 . 

1.62 

1.33 

December  28 . 

.... 

1.43 

December  29 . 

.... 

1.53 

Average  . 

$1.64 

$1.38 

Lawrence  County 

The  favorable  market  stimulated  drilling  in  the  deep-sand  field  of  Law¬ 
rence  County,  where  246  wells  were  completed  in  1916  as  compared  with 
157  in  1915.  Of  those  drilled  in  1916  there  were  33  dry  and  the  remainder 
had  an  average  initial  yield  of  nearly  45  barrels. 

Drilling  in  the  deep  sands  is  expensive,  especially  with  the  prevailing 
high  prices  for  material,  but  if  oil  continues  to  hold  its  present  market 
value,  much  drilling  will  be  done  during  1917.  The  large  number  of  sands 
in  Lawrence  County  renders  it  extremely  attractive  to  the  oil  operator. 


14 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


The  Ohio  Oil  Company  wells,  mentioned  below,  are  among  the  best 
of  those  recently  drilled  in  the  county : 

1.  Clay  Seed  No.  2  farm,  well  No.  6,  sec.  15,  Lawrence  Township;  310  barrels 

from  Buchanan  sand  at  1,297  feet. 

2.  J.  R.  King  No.  3  farm,  sec.  13,  Lawrence  Township;  100  barrels  from  Kirk¬ 

wood  sand. 

3.  Wm,  Buchanan  No.  6,  sec.  6,  Dennison  Township;  480  barrels  from  Mc- 

Closky  sand  at  1,845  feet. 

Wabash  County 

The  Allendale  field  was  the  scene  of  considerable  activity  during  the 
year ;  29  wells  were  completed,  12  of  which  were  dry.  The  average  initial 
yield  of  the  producers  was  137  barrels,  which  was  the  best  record  of  any 
Illinois  field. 

The  present  production  comes  from  two  sands — the  Biehl  above,  and 
the  Jordan  which  lies  about  35  feet  lower.  The  two  sands  occupy  about  the 
position  of  the  Buchanan  sand  of  the  main  fields,  although  it  may  be  a  new 
sand  lying  between  the  Buchanan  and  the  Kirkwood.  The  Chester  beds 
are  thicker  in  Wabash  County  than  in  Lawrence  County,  and  it  is  believed 
that  the  Kirkwood  sand  should  be  reached  about  450  to  475  feet,  the  Tracey 
575  feet,  and  the  McClosky  700  to  750  feet  below  the  top  of  the  Biehl 
sand.  These  sands  should  be  tested  in  the  area  of  best  present  produc¬ 
tion,  in  other  words,  on  the  anticline. 

The  newer  wells  in  sections  3  and  4  had  an  initial  production  of  from 
100  to  280  barrels. 


SOUTH-CENTRAL  ILLINOIS 
Macoupin  County 

Six  wells  were  drilled  in  Macoupin  County  during  1916.  Of  these, 
three  are  gas  wells  and  the  remainder  are  dry. 

Arrangements  were  made  for  the  commercial  utilization  of  the  Staun¬ 
ton  gas,  and  a  pipe  line  was  laid  connecting  the  field  with  Belleville,  Ed- 
wardsville,  Collinsville,  Marysville,  and  Staunton.  Wherever  gas  mains 
were  available,  they  were  utilized  and  the  artificial  plants  rendered  idle. 

The  owners  of  the  field  should  have  field  tests  made  to  determine  the 
exact  gasoline  content  of  their  product.  The  new  absorption  process  of 
extracting  gasoline  from  natural  gas  is  commercially  profitable  with  gas 
that  contains  as  little  as  one  pint  to  \l/>  pints  of  gasoline  per  thousand  cubic 
feet  of  gas.  The  gas  associated  with  the  oil  at  Staunton  should  be  tested 
first,  since  it  is  likely  to  contain  a  larger  amount  of  the  lighter  constituents 
than  the  gas  from  the  dry  sands  on  top  of  the  dome. 


PETROLEUM  IN  ILLINOIS  IN  1916 


15 


Clinton  County 

Drilling  in  Clinton  County  was  confined  mostly  to  inside  locations  in 
the  Carlyle  field  and  to  the  area  near  the  Frogtown  pool  opened  up  at  the 
close  of  1915.  In  the  latter  area  a  few  fair  producers  were  drilled  during 
the  early  part  of  the  year,  together  with  a  number  of  dry  holes.  The  oil 
sand  is  found  at  a  depth  of  about  950  feet.  Of  the  33  wells  drilled  in  the 
county,  22  were  dry.  The  average  initial  yield  of  the  producers  was  about 
26  barrels. 

The  Flat  Branch  Oil  Company  drilled  dry  holes  on  the  Philip  Schafer 
farm  in  section  1,  and  on  the  H.  Meyer  farm  in  section  24,  both  in  Wheat- 
field  Township.  The  Bartelso  Oil  Company’s  test  on  the  H.  Yarrell  farm; 
section  1,  Germantown  Township,  was  dry  at  1,045  feet. 

Marion  County 

Interest  was  revived  during  the  year  in  the  Junction  City  dome  where 
several  sands  are  productive  at  shallow  depth.  The  field  lies  about  midway 
between  Centralia  and  the  Sandoval  field. 

The  Dykstra  sand  lies  about  560  feet  below  the  surface  or  20  feet 
below  coal  No.  6;  the  Wilson  sand  is  100  to  110  feet  below  the  coal;  and 
a  lower  sand  produces  in  Tilton  No.  1  at  a  depth  of  160  feet  below  the  coal. 

The  Stein  and  Benoist  sands  which  produce  oil  at  Sandoval  and  in  the 
wells  east  of  Centralia,  should  be  tested  in  the  Junction  City  dome.  For  this 
purpose  a  well  should  be  located  in  the  midst  of  the  best  shallow  sand 
production.  Stuart  St.  Clair  of  the  Survey  spent  ten  days  in  the  Centralia 
area,  and  the  results  of  his  work  are  published  in  this  bulletin. 

During  the  year,  26  wells  were  completed  in  the  county,  8  of  which 
were  dry.  The  average  initial  production  was  12  barrels. 

WESTERN  ILLINOIS 

No  important  developments  featured  the  western  part  of  the  State  in 
1916.  McDonough  County  fields  were  practically  drilled  up  by  the  com¬ 
pletion  of  210  wells,  185  of  which  were  producers  with  an  average  initial 
yield  of  10  barrels. 

After  about  20  failures  in  Hancock  County,  where  Roberts  No.  1  was 
drilled  early  in  the  history  of  the  field,  Snowden  Brothers  found  oil  in  hole 
No.  3  on  the  Charles  Aleshire  farm,  sec.  24,  St.  Mary’s  Township.  The 
pay  sand  is  11  feet  thick  at  a  depth  of  360  feet.  Aleshire  Nos.  3,  4,  and 
5  had  an  initial  production  of  50,  25,  and  20  barrels,  respectively. 

In  attempts  to  extend  the  field  23  wells  were  drilled  in  the  county  dur¬ 
ing  the  year,  but  except  for  the  wells  close  to  the  McDonough  County  line, 
all  were  failures. 


16 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


A  dry  hole  was  completed  in  Schuyler  County  and  two  in  Brown 
County. 

The  Ohio  Oil  Company  drilled  dry  holes  in  sec.  6,  New  Salem  Town¬ 
ship,  and  in  sec.  23,  Beverly  Township,  both  in  Adams  County.  In  the 
former,  the  lower  12  feet  of  the  “Second  lime”  showed  water  and  a  very 
heavy  oil  characteristic  of  former  wells  drilled  in  the  Pike  County  area. 

In  sec.  27,  Washington  Township,  Pike  County,  a  dry  hole  was  drilled 
on  the  Goodrich  farm. 

Four  dry  holes  were  drilled  in  Henderson  County,  located  as  follows: 
sec.  12  and  NW.  54  sec.  8,  T.  9  N.,  R.  4  W. ;  SE.  54  sec.  17  and  SW.  54 
sec.  22,  T.  10  N.,  R.  4  W.  One  dry  hole  was  drilled  in  Warren  County 
on  the  Parrish  farm,  NW.  54  sec.  34,  T.  9  N.,  R.  3  W. 

The  results  of  the  wildcat  drilling  in  western  Illinois  served  to  em¬ 
phasize  the  “spotty"  character  of  the  Hoing  oil  sand.  So  far  as  the  Sur¬ 
vey  has  been  able  to  learn,  no  well  outside  the  producing  field  has  penetrated 
sand  at  the  base  of  the  Second  (Niagaran)  limestone.  Despite  this  fact, 
one  or  two  of  the  Henderson  County  wells  had  a  show  of  oil  or  gas  at 
the  contact  of  the  Second  limestone  and  the  underlying  Maquoketa  shale. 

It  is  certain  that  favorable  geological  structure  exists  outside  the  Col- 
mar-Plymouth  fields,  but  the  prevailing  absence  of  the  sand  is  a  discour¬ 
aging  feature. 

SOUTHERN  ILLINOIS 

During  the  summer  the  Survey  maintained  two  parties  in  Saline,  Wil¬ 
liamson,  Johnson,  Pope,  Union,  and  Jackson  counties  for  the  purpose  of 
determining  the  geological  structure  of  the  region.  Two  prominent  anti¬ 
clines  were  mapped  and  described  in  Extract  from  Bulletin  35.  Little  is 
known  regarding  water  conditions,  but  the  possibility  of  locating  the  best 
structure  in  advance  of  drilling  appeals  to  operators,  since  two  or  three 
wells,  located  properly,  test  the  entire  area,  whereas  a  hundred  holes,  incor¬ 
rectly  placed,  merely  leave  the  question  open. 

Dry  holes  were  drilled  in  Saline  County  as  follows:  center  sec.  21,  and 
NW.  54  NE.  54  sec.  35,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E. ;  NW.  corner  sec.  9,  T.  11  S., 
R.  5  E.  At  the  close  of  the  year  wells  were  being  drilled  in  the  SE.  54 
sec.  9,  T.  10  S.,  R.  6  E.,  and  in  the  SE.  cor.  sec.  33,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E.,  the 
latter  being  the  best  location  of  any  made,  so  far  as  structure  is  concerned. 

NORTHERN  ILLINOIS 

In  March,  1916,  the  presence  of  oil  and  gas  was  noted  along  a  small 
fault  plane  in  mine  No.  7  of  the  Wilmington  Star  Coal  Company,  near  Coal 
City.  At  the  time  of  the  writer’s  examination  it  was  estimated  that  the 
flow  of  oil  amounted  to  about  two  gallons  per  24  hours,  whereas  the  gas 
did  not  issue  at  a  rate  sufficient  to  burn  eontinuouslv.  The  oil  has  a  gravity 

j  o  J 


PETROLEUM  IN  ILLINOIS  IN  1916 


17 


of  32°  Beaume,  and  the  gas  is  of  good  quality.  The  oil  and  gas  may  have 
originated  either  in  the  Maquoketa  shale,  which  underlies  the  “Coal  Meas¬ 
ures”  in  the  region  or  in  the  Galena-Platteville  (“Trenton”)  limestone, 
which  lies  directly  beneath  the  Maquoketa  shale. 

In  a  shallow  hole  drilled  in  mine  No.  7  sandstone  3  or  4  feet  thick  was 
found  at  a  depth  of  about  20  feet  below  the  coal.  The  fire  clay  under  the 
coal  and  above  the  sandstone  acts  as  an  impervious  layer  and  helps  to  seal 
the  oil  in  the  sandstone  and  to  prevent  its  escape  except  along  fault  lines 
which  afford  channels  upward. 

A  dome  exists  in  secs.  35  and  36,  T.  33  N.,  R.  7  E.,  and  in  secs.  2  and 
11,  T.  32  N.,  R.  7  E.  It  is  not  certain  that  any  porous  sandstones  underlie 
the  areas  mentioned,  but  if  they  do,  the  tendency  of  any  oil  and  gas  in  the 
vicinity  would  be  to  accumulate  in  the  area  where  the  rocks  lie  highest 
above  sea  level.  A  well  located  in  sec.  35,  T.  32  N.,  R.  7  E.,  was  drilled 
to  a  depth  of  101  feet.  No  sandstone  was  found,  but  gas  was  struck  at  a 
depth  of  45  feet  in  limestone.  No  record  is  available  as  to  the  amount 
of  flow,  but  presumably  it  was  not  enough  to  cause  excitement  at  the  time. 

The  top  of  the  Galena-Platteville  limestone  lies  not  more  than  200 
to  250  feet  below  the  surface  on  the  dome.  The  Galena-Platteville  itself 
should  be  penetrated  in  any  attempt  to  test  the  area,  but  drilling  in  rocks 
below  the  Galena-Platteville  would  be  useless.  The  geological  structure 
of  the  area  is  mapped  and  described  in  a  previous  bulletin2  of  the  Survey. 

MISCELLANEOUS  DRILLING 

During  1916  scattered  dry  holes  not  mentioned  above  were  drilled  near 
Eldorado,  Saline  County;  sec.  29,  Mulberry  Grove  Township,  and  sec.  11, 
Mills  Township,  Bond  County;  sec.  13,  Otego  Township,  Fayette  County; 
near  Campbell  Hill,  Jackson  County;  near  Unity  and  Tamms,  Alexander 
County ;  near  Ullin,  Pulaski  County ;  and  near  Coal  City,  Grundy  County. 

SUMMARY  TABLES 

The  following  tables  show  the  oil  development  in  Illinois  during  1916. 
The  figures  are  compiled  from  the  Oil  City  Derrick  and  the  Oil  and  Gas 
Journal  with  additions  by  the  author. 

The  total  number  of  wells  drilled  to  Jan.  1,  1917  was  25,323  of  which 
4,645  or  18.3  per  cent  were  dry. 

2Cady,  G.  H.,  Coal  resources  of  District  I:  Illinois  State  Geol.  Survey  Coal  Mining  Series 
Bull.  10,  1915. 


18 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


Table  3. — Monthly  record  of  wells  drilled  in  Illinois,  1916 


Month 

Completed 

New 

production 

Dry 

holes 

Average 

initial 

production 

Abandoned 

wells 

Gas 

wells 

January  . 

93 

Bbls. 

984 

33 

Bbls. 

16.4 

14 

7 

February  . 

82 

1,105 

23 

18.8 

16 

6 

March  . 

119 

2,339 

29 

26.7 

5 

3 

April  . 

93 

1,056 

22 

14.9 

7 

1 

May  . . . 

169 

2,678 

38 

21.1 

5 

4 

June  . 

184 

2,828 

43 

20.1 

36 

6 

July  . 

142 

2,647 

25 

22.6 

10 

1 

August  . 

156 

2,957 

32 

23.0 

5 

2 

September  . 

142 

2,700 

28 

23.7 

10 

1 

October  . 

103 

1,862 

32 

26.3 

17 

3 

November  . 

110 

2,478 

24 

28.8 

6 

1 

December  . 

66 

1,134 

14 

21.8 

14 

0 

Total . 

1,459 

24,713 

317 

145 

36 

1915  . 

756 

14,055 

197 

155 

18 

Table  4. — County  record  of  wells  drilled  in  Illinois,  1916 


County 

Completed 

New 

production 

Dry 

Gas 

Abandoned 

Clark  . 

256 

Bbls. 

3,749 

36 

4 

30 

Cumberland  . 

40 

434 

3 

3 

.  . 

Crawford  . 

568 

6,071 

151 

26 

64 

Lawrence  . 

246 

9,540 

33 

47 

Clinton  . 

33 

291 

22 

4 

Marion  . 

26 

217 

8 

Wabash  . 

29 

2,325 

12 

McDonough  . 

210 

1,855 

25 

Hancock  . 

23 

167 

10 

Schuyler  . 

1 

1 

Macoupin  . 

6 

3 

3 

Bond  . 

2 

2 

•  •  . 

Coles  . 

11 

57 

5 

Brown  . 

2 

2 

Saline  . 

3 

3 

Tackson  . 

1 

1 

Fayette  . 

1 

1 

Henderson  . 

4 

4 

Warren"  . 

1 

1 

Adams"  . 

2 

2 

Pike"  . 

1 

1 

Alexander"  . 

1 

1 

Pulaski®  . 

1 

1 

Grundy"  . 

1 

1 

Totals . 

1,469 

24,606 

329 

36 

145 

"Added  by  author. 


PARTS  OF  SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND 
WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 

By  Albert  D.  Brokaw 


OUTLINE 

PAGE 

Introduction  . 20 

Purpose  and  scope  of  report .  20 

Acknowledgments  .  20 

Geography  .  20 

Topography  .  20 

Drainage  .  22 

Transportation  .  22 

Stratigraphy  .  23 

Beds  to  be  penetrated  in  drilling .  23 

Rocks  exposed  at  surface .  24 

General  relationships  .  24 

Pottsville  series  .  24 

Carbondale  formation  .  28 

Glacial  drift  .  29 

Oil  and  gas .  29 

Relation  of  geologic  structure  to  oil  and  gas  accumulation .  29 

Structural  features  of  area .  31 

Gold  Hill  fault  .  31 

McCormick  and  New  Burnside  anticlines .  32 

Recommendations  for  future  drilling .  33 

Localities  already  tested  .  35 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

PLATE 

I.  Graphic  section  showing  beds  to  be  penetrated  in  drilling .  24 

II.  Map  showing  geologic  structure  in  parts  of  Saline,  Johnson,  and  Wil¬ 
liamson  counties  .  32 

III.  Geologic  cross-sections  in  Pope  and  Saline  counties .  34 

FIGURE 

1.  Map  showing  area  covered  by  this  report .  21 

2.  Map  showing  the  approximate  position  of  the  outcrop  of  coal  No.  2  and 

the  position  of  the  Chester-Pottsville  contact .  26 

3.  Concretionary  iron  bands  in  the  middle  cliff-making  sandstone .  27 

4.  Cross-bedding  in  Pottsville  sandstone  in  east  bank  of  Mud  Springs  Hollow  28 

5.  Diagrammatic  cross-section  showing  effect  of  geologic  structure  on  oil 

accumulation  .  30 

6.  Steeply  tilted  beds  in  faulted  contact  with  gently  dipping  beds  in  Dog 

Hollow  .  33 

7.  Diagrammatic  cross-section  showing  proper  location  for  test  well  on  an 

unsymmetrical  anticline  .  34 

8.  Graphic  sections  of  the  Royse,  Bynum,  and  Warren  wells .  36 

(19) 


20 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


INTRODUCTION 
Purpose  and  Scope  of  Report 

The  area  covered  in  this  report  lies  in  the  southern  parts  of  Saline  and 
Williamson  and  in  the  northern  parts  of  Pope  and  Johnson  counties  (fig.  1). 
It  embraces  the  greater  part  of  Tps.  10  and  11  S.  and  the  north  half  of 
12  S.,  in  Rs.  2,  3,  4,  5,  and  6  E.  of  the  Third  Principal  Meridian. 

The  field  work  was  done  in  June,  July,  August,  and  September,  1916, 
by  the  writer  with  the  assistance  of  Mr.  Horace  A.  Scott.  The  work  is  in 
the  nature  of  more  or  less  detailed  reconnaissance,  as  the  area  to  be  cov¬ 
ered  (450  sq.  mi.)  and  the  lack  of  accurate  maps  precluded  the  possibility 
of  detailed  field  work. 

The  report  calls  attention  to  the  presence  of  two  anticlines  that  appear 
to  warrant  conservative  exploration.  It  is  to  be  emphasized,  however,  that 
the  uncertainties  are  great,  even  in  the  most  favorable  localities,  on  account 
of  unknown  faults  which  may  break  the  reservoirs  or  restrict  collecting 
areas,  and  because  there  may  never  have  been  important  quantities  of  oil 
in  the  rocks  of  the  region. 

Since  the  relationship  between  geologic  structure  and  oil  accumulation 
has  been  so  well  established,  the  publication  of  an  official  report  showing 
the  existence  of  an  anticline  or  a  dome  is  the  signal  for  wholesale  leasing 
and  drilling.  Usually  the  resulting  drilling  far  exceeds  the  amount  neces¬ 
sary  for  proper  tests.  Until  oil  has  actually  been  found  in  paying  quantity, 
all  activities  in  leasing  and  in  drilling  must  be  considered  extremely  spec¬ 
ulative. 


Acknowledgments 

The  writer  wishes  to  acknowledge  the  many  favors  granted  and  the 
courtesies  shown  by  the  residents  of  the  region.  For  information  he  is 
especially  indebted  to  Messrs.  Hugh  Murray,  W.  M.  Page,  Trammel  and 
Joyner,  and  Dr.  S.  J.  Blackman  for  maps,  and  other  materials.  The  careful 
work  of  his  field  assistant,  Mr.  H.  A.  Scott,  is  also  gratefully  acknowledged. 

GEOGRAPHY 

Topography 

The  northern  part  of  the  region  is  a  lowland  area,  the  elevations  above 
sea  level  ranging  from  about  375  to  450  or  500  feet.  It  includes  the  broad 
alluvial  plain  of  Saline  River  and  its  larger  tributaries.  Here  and  there 
shale  hills  rise  above  the  general  level,  and  throughout  a  large  part  of  the 
lowland  area  the  topography  is  gently  rolling  rather  than  fiat.  In  southern 
Williamson  County  the  terminal  moraine  of  one  of  the  earlier  glacial  epochs 
is  found  along  the  border  of  the  lowland  area. 


Fig.  1. — Map  showing  area  covered  by  this  report. 


22 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


The  southern  portion  of  the  district  is  notably  higher,  the  elevations 
reaching  800  feet  above  sea  level.  In  the  adjacent  area  to  the  east  the 
maximum  elevation  is  1,060  feet  above  the  sea,  the  highest  point  in  southern 
Illinois.  This  highland  area  is  often  designated  “a  spur  of  the  Ozarks", 
and  the  topography  is  not  unlike  that  of  part  of  the  Ozark  regions.  The 
county  is  very  rough — the  stream  valleys  are  deep  and  steep  walled,  the 
divides  are  commonly  narrow,  but  in  a  few  places  are  found  broad,  rolling 
uplands.  A  considerable  portion  of  the  upland  area  is  forested.  Numerous 
tracts  have  been  cleared,  and  after  a  few  years  of  cultivation  have  been 
abandoned  to  persimmon  and  sassafras.  Roads  are  steep  and  rocky,  since 
they  must  follow  ridges  or  valleys  more  commonly  than  surveyed  land  lines. 

The  highland  area  is  terminated  on  the  south  by  an  escarpment  from 
150  to  300  feet  high,  which  forms  the  most  striking  and  picturesque  top¬ 
ographic  feature  of  the  area.  The  escarpment  marks  the  boundary  be¬ 
tween  the  “sandstone  country"  of  the  upland  and  the  limestone  country  to 
the  south. 


Drainage 

The  northern  portion  of  the  area  is  drained  chiefly  by  the  tributaries  of 
South  Fork  of  Saline  River.  The  northwestern  corner  is  drained  by  Wolf 
Creek,  a  tributary  of  Big  Muddy.  The  southern  drainage  is  by  tributaries 
of  Lusk  Creek,  Bay  Creek,  and  Cache  River.  In  the  smaller  stream  valleys 
striking  scenic  features  are  not  uncommon  ;  among  the  most  widely  known 
are  the  natural  bridge  on  Hunting  Branch  southeast  of  McCormick ;  on 
Jackson  Springs  in  sec.  31,  T.  11  S.,  R.  4  E. ;  on  Gum  Springs  in  sec.  3, 
T.  12  S.,  R.  4  E. ;  on  Leigh  Falls  in  sec.  35,  T.  11  S.,  R.  4  E. ;  and  Fern 
Cliff,  one-half  mile  southwest  of  Goreville. 

T  RAN  SPORT  ATION 

Three  railways  cross  the  region:  the  Big  Four  through  Carriers  Mills, 
Stonefort,  New  Burnside,  Parker,  Tunnel  Hill,  and  Sanborn;  the  Illinois 
Central  through  Willeford,  Creal  Springs,  Parker,  Ozark,  and  Simpson1 ; 
and  the  Chicago  and  Eastern  Illinois  through  Hudgens,  Goreville,  and 
Buncombe.  The  Chicago,  Burlington  and  Quincy  Railroad  operates  trains 
over  the  Chicago  &  Eastern  Illinois  tracks. 

A  number  of  postoffices  in  the  area  are  situated  at  considerable  dis¬ 
tance  from  the  railroads.  With  the  exception  of  Eddyville,  a  thriving  vil¬ 
lage  of  about  three  hundred  inhabitants,  these  are  very  small  communities, 
and  accommodations  for  travelers  are  available  only  in  private  houses.  The 
roads  are  rough,  but  during  the  summer  and  fall  the  main  highways  can 
be  traveled  by  automobile.  Automobiles  are  available  at  Harrisburg  (seven 
miles  north  of  Mitchellsville),  Carriers  Mills,  Stonefort,  New  Burnside, 


1Simpson  is  mile  south  of  the  southern  edge  of  the  map,  in  sec.  22,  T.  12  S.,  R.  4  E. 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


23 


Creal  Springs,  Vienna  (about  10  miles  south  of  Tunnel  Hill),  at  Marion 
(5  miles  north  of  Hudgens)  at  Goreville,  and  at  Eddyville.  Eddyville  may 
be  reached  by  stage  or  automobile  from  Golconda. 

STRATIGRAPHY 

Beds  To  Be  Penetrated  in  Drilling 

The  beds  with  which  the  oil  operator  is  concerned  in  the  region  under 
consideration  include  the  Pottsville  formation,  the  underlying  Chester  group 
of  formations,  and  the  Ste.  Genevieve  limestone.  In  terms  of  the  well- 
known  oil  sands  of  southeastern  Illinois,  these  beds  include  the  horizon 
of  the  Bridgeport  and  Robinson  sands  at  the  top,  and,  in  descending  order, 
the  Buchanan,  the  Kirkwood,  the  Tracey,  and  the  McClosky  sands.  How¬ 
ever,  both  the  Pottsville  and  the  Chester  are  very  much  thicker  in  the  area 
described  than  in  the  main  oil  fields,  and  it  is  not  to  be  expected  that  any 
one  sand  may  be  traced  from  the  main  oil  fields  to  the  southern  end  of 
the  State. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  on  the  crests  of  the  anticlines  a  large 
part  of  the  Pottsville  rocks  have  been  eroded,  and  that  the  sands  of  the 
Chester  group,  together  with  the  underlying  Ste.  Genevieve,  ofifer  the  best 
opportunities  for  exploration. 

In  general,  the  Pottsville  in  the  area  under  discussion  consists  of  three 
heavy,  clifif-making  sandstones  75  to  150  feet  or  more  thick,  separated  from 
each  other  by  softer  beds  consisting  of  thinner  sandstone,  shale,  and  mix¬ 
tures  of  the  two.  The  latter  beds  weather  into  valleys  and  depressions, 
whereas  the  thick  sandstone  members  stand  out  boldly  as  clififs.  The  Potts¬ 
ville  is  approximately  1,000  feet  thick,  but  the  uppermost  part  of  the  forma¬ 
tion  is  not  included  in  the  graphic  section,  Plate  I. 

The  Chester  group  consists  of  approximately  1,000  feet  of  limestones, 
shales,  and  sandstones.  Four  prominent  sandstone  formations  are  present 
in  Pope  County  and  should  be  represented  throughout  the  area.  The  lime¬ 
stones  and  red  shales  are  the  most  conspicuous  features  of  the  group.  Drill¬ 
ing  should  penetrate  the  Ste.  Genevieve  in  order  to  test  the  horizon 
corresponding  to  the  McClosky  “sand”  of  the  main  fields. 

The  graphic  section  (Plate  I)  includes  the  record  of  the  Ohio  Oil 
Co.’s  J.  H.  Bynum  well,  sec.  35,  Stonefort  Township,  Saline  County,  from 
the  top  of  the  well  which  is  located  at  the  base  of  the  upper  clififmaking 
sandstone  of  the  Pottsville  to  the  base  of  this  formation  (see  also  figure  8). 
From  a  depth  of  590  feet,  or  the  top  of  the  Chester  beds,  the  section  is 
from  surface  measurements  and  deep-well  studies  by  Professor  Stuart 
Weller. 

The  formation  names  in  Plate  1  are  tentative  and  are  subject  to  revision. 


24 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


Rocks  Exposed  at  Surface 

GENERAL  RELATIONSHIPS 

The  surface  rocks  of  the  area  comprise  the  lower  portion  of  the  “Coal 
Measures”  known  as  the  Pottsville  series,  a  small  area  of  glacial  drift  and 
loess,  some  alluvial  deposits  of  Pleistocene  age,  and  recent  alluvial  de¬ 
posits  in  the  stream  valleys. 

The  Chester  formations,  which  underlie  the  Pottsville  series,  outcrop 
to  the  south,  and  the  overlying  Carbondale  formation  outcrops  to  the  north. 
The  southern  boundary  of  the  Carbondale  is  the  outcrop  of  coal  No.  2  or 
Murphysboro  coal.  The  Pottsville  series  may  be  defined  as  that  portion 
of  the  “Coal  Measures”  below  coal  No.  2.  The  field  work  of  the  present 
report  was  restricted  to  the  area  immediately  underlain  by  the  Pottsville 
series. 


POTTSVILLE  SERIES 


The  Pottsville  series  of  southern  Illinois  consists  of  sandstones,  con¬ 
glomerates,  and  shales,  containing  local  “pocket  coals”  or  nonpersistent  coal 
beds  and  a  very  few  thin  limestones  of  local  extent.  The  total  thickness 
of  the  Pottsville  is  estimated  at  about  1,100  feet;  the  maximum  measure¬ 
ment  was  obtained  from  the  log  of  the  Royse  well,  connected  with  a  traverse 
from  that  point  to  the  Henshaw  mine,  which  is  operating  on  coal  No.  2; 
this  gave  a  thickness  of  1,060  feet. 

A  generalized  cross-section,  derived  from  a  study  of  logs  in  conjunc¬ 
tion  with  observations  on  the  outcrop  of  the  more  resistant  members  is 
given  below,  numbered  in  order  from  the  bottom  up: 


Generalized  section  of  Pottsville  series 


Thickness 

Feet 


7.  Brown  gritty  shale .  10-40 

6.  Lower  cliff-making  sandstone,  massive  cross-bedded  sandstone  with 

conglomeratic  beds  .  100-250 

5.  Shale  with  thin  micaceous  sandy  beds  and  local  dirty  coals .  40-60 

4.  Middle  cliff-making  sandstone,  massive,  cross-bedded,  quartzose  sand¬ 
stone  with  local  conglomeratic  lenses .  40-150 

3.  Shale  with  thin  sandy  layers  and  local  coal  beds;  one  cannel  coal. .  . .  75-125 

2.  Upper  cliff-making  sandstone,  massive,  cross-bedded  sandstones  not 

conglomeratic,  commonly  ironstained .  100-200 

1.  Shales  with  thin  beds  of  sandstone  and  sandy,  micaceous  shale ;  local 

limestones  and  coal  beds;  some  gypsiferous  shale .  400 


In  western  Kentucky  the  Pottsville  series  has  been  divided  into  the 
Caseyville  sandstone  and  the  Tradewater  formations.2  Apparently  the  for- 

2Lee,  Wallace,  Geology  of  the  Kentucky  part  of  the  Shawneetown  quadrangle:  Kentucky 
Geol.  Survey,  1916. 


•JAOXTWSM 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  I 


r 


100 


200 


1900 


F1'- — ■ —  i- 


I- 


Shaly  limestone 


2000 


2100 


<=>«=»«=> 


Chert 


2200  •  Coal 


Cypress 


Renault 


§ 

> 

® 

c 

CD 

O 

d 

■—> 

V) 


r 


Ohara 


Rosiclare 

Fredonia 


i 


Upper  cliff-making  sandstone;  exposed  at  Bynum 
well 


Middle  cliff-making  sandstone 


■t1  ine-grained,  yellowish-brown  sandstone;  conspicu¬ 
ous  shale  bed  near  top  in  places ;  thickness  of 
formation,  125-150  feet 


Limestones  and  interbedded  shales ;  red  shale  present 
in  places;  thickness  100-160  feet 


Limestone,  oolitic  to  dense 


The  oolite  is  in  position  of  McClosky  sand  of  main 
Illinois  oil  field 


Graphic  section  showing  beds  to  be  penetrated  in  drilling 


}  4300 


■ 


iMeusnq  Ff 


\  jo:  ujrrrou'  1 00- T NO  tcc 


PJ*TCJ<  jlUJG?fOUC 


y  JJoo 


VERTICAL  SCALE  IN  FEET 


1 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


/ 


100 


200 


300 


400 


600 


600 


700 


800 


900 


1000 


1100 


1200 


1300 


1400 


1600 


1600 


1700 


1800 


1900 


LEGEND 


Red  shale 


Shale 


Sandy  shale 


Sand 


X 


Limestone 


Shaly  limestone 


2000 


2100 


2200 


a  s  2. 


Chert 


Coal 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  I 


Upper  clillf-making  sandstone;  exposed  at  Bynum 
well 


Middle  cliff-making  sandstone 


Coal,  1  foot 


Lower  cliff-making  sandstone;  general  position  of 
Buchanan  sand 


Limestones  and  shales,  some  red  beds;  thickness  100- 
300  feet 


Fine  grained,  yellowish  brown,  at  some  places  pink 
tints  in  upper  part;  thickness  60-130  feet 


Blue-black  limestone  with  shale  partings ;  thickness 
of  formation,  100-170  feet 


Yellowish  brown  becoming  reddish  in  places;  thick¬ 
ness,  100-150  feet.  Locally  a  shale  has  been  seen 
somewhat  above  middle.  Contains  tar  springs, 
Breckenridge  County,  Kentucky. 


Interbedded  limestones  and  shales ;  thickness  40-95 
feet 


Moderately  fine-grained,  yellowish-brown  sandstone ; 
small  amount  of  shale;  thickness  80-100  feet 


Limestones  and  shales,  variable  in  color  and  charac¬ 
ter  ;  a  red  shale  has  been  seen  in  places ;  thickness, 
100-215  feet 


Fine-grained,  yellowish-brown  sandstone ;  _  conspicu¬ 
ous  shale  bed  near  top  in  places ;  thickness  of 
formation,  125-150  feet 


Limestones  and  interbedded  shales ;  red  shale  present 
in  places;  thickness  100-160  feet 


Limestone,  oolitic  to  dense 


The  oolite  is  in  position  of  McClosky  sand  of  main 
Illinois  oil  field 


Graphic  section  showing  beds  to  be  penetrated  in  drilling 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


25 


mer  corresponds  approximately  to  the  lower  and  middle  cliff-making 
sandstones  and  the  underlying  shales,  and  the  latter  may  be  equivalent  in 
part  at  least,  to  the  upper  sandstone  and  shales  of  the  section.  The  basal 
shale  of  the  series  is  exposed  at  a  few  points  in  the  southern  edge  of  the 
area,  and  is  recorded  in  the  logs  of  all  wells  which  have  entirely  penetrated 
the  Pottsville  series.  It  is  characteristically  brown  in  color  and  in  most 
places  thin  bedded  and  gritty.  Exposures  are  not  numerous,  as  the  out¬ 
crops  are  at  the  foot  of  the  southern  escarpment  and  as  the  shale  is  com¬ 
monly  covered  with  talus.  The  lower  cliff-making  sandstone  is  a  massive 
cross-bedded  sandstone  notably  conglomeratic  with  pebbles  less  than  an 
inch  in  diameter.  Conglomeratic  lenses  are  scattered  irregularly  through 
the  formation,  and  are  no  more  abundant  near  the  base  than  at  many  other 
horizons.  The  sand  is  for  the  most  part  coarse,  a  quality  that  gives  locally 
a  sugary  texture  to  the  rock.  Occasional  grains  of  chert  are  found.  This 
sandstone  forms  the  bold  south-facing  escarpment  which  marks  the  southern 
boundary  of  the  upland.  It  is  a  resistant  rock,  and  a  few  outliers  are 
found  capping  high  hills  south  of  the  escarpment.  The  approximate  posi¬ 
tion  of  this  escarpment  is  shown  in  figure  2. 

Exposures  of  the  overlying  shale  are  not  abundant,  but  the  area  it 
immediately  underlies  is  characterized  by  gently  rolling  topography  in 
contrast  to  the  rougher  sandstone  country.  Such  an  area  is  found  north 
of  Eddyville,  and  in  various  other  parts  of  the  region.  The  shale  is  com¬ 
monly  reported  in  well  logs,  but  its  thickness  varies  considerably. 

The  middle  cliff-making  sandstone  is  typically  developed  at  Buffalo 
Gap,  south  of  Goreville,  where  it  forms  a  low  escarpment.  It  may  be  traced 
southeastward,  running  from  a  little  south  of  Sanborn  through  Moccasin 
Gap  and  along  the  north  flank  of  the  McCormick  anticline  to  the  Pope 
County  line.  Here  this  sandstone  is  buried  under  later  formations,  but 
it  reappears  at  McCormick  in  the  head  of  Ogden  Hollow  and  may  be  traced 
continuously  along  the  McCormick  anticline  to  a  point  south  of  Colorado 
(fig.  3)  where  it  again  disappears,  to  reappear  in  the  flank  of  the  small 
dome-like  structure  north  of  Delwood.  Farther  east  exposures  are  inter¬ 
rupted,  and  as  this  sandstone  can  not  be  definitely  distinguished  from  the 
lower  one,  it  can  not  be  positively  stated  which  outcrops  are  to  be  correlated 
with  this  sandstone.  It  is  believed  to  be  the  sandstone  forming  most  of 
the  cliffs  near  the  Pope-Saline  County  line. 

The  overlying  shale  is  again  evidenced  more  commonly  by  rolling 
topography  than  by  outcrops,  though  a  large  number  of  rather  limited  ex¬ 
posures  are  to  be  found.  Coals  of  local  extent  are  found  in  various  parts 
of  this  shale,  and  most  of  the  coal  banks  or  small  local  mines  in  the  Potts¬ 
ville  are  working  coals  in  this  shale  member.  One  40-inch  bed  of  cannel 
coal  has  been  opened  southeast  of  Ozark  in  secs.  35  and  26,  T.  1 1  S.,  R.  6  E. 


R.2  E.  R.3  E.  R.4  E.  R  5  E.  R  6  E 


26 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


soil  'Sll'l  ‘SSl'l 


R.2  E.  R.3  E.  R.4  E.  R.5  E.  R.6  E 

Fig.  2. — Map  showing  the  approximate  position  of  the  outcrop  of  coal  No.  2  and  the  position  of  the  Chester-Pottsville  contact. 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


27 


The  top  of  the  shale  is  exposed  in  the  south  end  of  the  tunnel  at  Tunnel 
Hill,  where  it  is  overlain  by  the  lower  part  of  the  upper  cliff-making  sand¬ 
stone. 

The  upper  cliff-making  sandstone  is  exposed  in  the  walls  of  Sugar 
Creek  at  Parker.  The  lower  portion  is  a  rather  thin-bedded,  dense,  fine¬ 
grained,  brown  sandstone  that  grades  upward  into  coarser  cross-bedded 
sandstone  closely  resembling  the  non-conglomeratic  phases  of  the  lower 


Fig.  3. — Concretionary  iron  bands  in  middle  cliff-making  sandstone,  sec.  7,  T. 
11  S.,  R.  6  E. 

sandstones.  At  Parker  the  sandstone  is  nearly  200  feet  thick,  but  con¬ 
siderable  variation  in  thickness  is  shown  in  logs  of  drilling  holes  and  at 
exposures.  The  formation  is  exposed  here  and  there  along  the  New 
Burnside  anticline.  It  forms  the  striking  ridge  at  the  Bynum  well,  and 
is  thought  to  form  the  steep  bluffs  along  Creed  Creek  at  least  as  far  east  as 


28 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


sec.  32,  T.  10  S.,  R.  6  E.  It  may  possibly  be  correlated  with  the  sandstone 
high  up  in  the  walls  of  Mud  Spring  Hollow  in  sec.  35,  T.  10  S.,  R.  6  E. 
Figure  4  is  from  this  locality. 

North  of  the  exposures  of  the  upper  cliff-making  sandstone  the  topog¬ 
raphy  is  characteristically  rolling,  and  most  of  the  outcrops  are  shale  or 
thin-bedded,  friable  sandstones  usually  in  very  limited  exposures.  The 
thickness  of  this  formation,  which  is  predominantly  shale  is  estimated  at 
400  feet.  This  upper  shale  includes  a  few  local  coal  beds,  and  thin  local 
limestones.  From  one  locality  gypsum  flakes  in  the  shale  were  reported. 


Fig.  4. — Cross-bedding  in  Pottsville  sandstone  in  east  bank  of  Mud  Springs  Hol¬ 
low,  sec.  35,  T.  10  S.,  R.  6  E. 


The  bluffs  west  of  Stonefort  and  at  Bald  Mountain,  northeast  of  New 
Burnside,  are  tentatively  referred  to  a  lens  of  sandstone  at  or  near  the 
top  of  the  Pottsville  series. 

CARBONDALE  FORMATION 

Coal  No.  2,  or  Murphysboro  coal,  is  the  basal  member  of  the  over- 
lying  Carbondale  formation.  In  this  region  it  consists  of  two  36-inch 
coal  seams  separated  by  15  to  25  feet  of  shale.  The  parting  thins  to  the 
west,  and  at  Murphysboro  it  is  not  noted.  Farther  east  the  two  seams 
are  said  to  be  40  feet  apart.  Exposures  are  not  abundant,  but  the  prob¬ 
able  outcrop  was  traced  by  locating  old  workings  many  of  which  are  caved 
and  inaccessible,  and  by  the  few  active  local  mines  on  one  or  the  other 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


29 


of  these  seams.  What  is  believed  to  be  coal  No.  2  was  traced  from  the 
hills  northwest  of  Mitchellsville  to  the  point  where  the  Big  Four  crosses 
the  South  Fork  of  Saline  River,  thence  southwestward  to  a  point  \l/>  miles 
west  of  New  Burnside.  From  this  point  the  outcrop  swings  northward 
and  is  shortly  covered  by  glacial  drift.  A  coal  mined  IV2  miles  southeast 
of  Hudgens  is  thought  to  belong  to  the  same  horizon.  No  exposures  were 
found  within  the  area  west  of  this  point,  but  an  8-foot  bed  is  reported 
in  sec.  8,  T.  10  S.,  R.  1  E.,  which  may  be  coal  No.  2. 

GLACIAL  DRIFT 

The  southern  limit  of  glaciation  is  near  the  Williamson- Johnson  county 
line.  Drift  was  observed  as  far  south  as  the  north  side  of  sec.  12,  T.  11  S., 
R.  2  E.  In  Saline  County  the  drift  has  not  extended  so  far  south  as  in 
Williamson  and  Johnson  counties,  and  the  terminal  moraine  was  not  fol¬ 
lowed.  Near  the  Williamson- Johnson  County  line  few  large  bowlders 
were  seen,  but  igneous  pebbles  are  abundant.  Owing  to  the  deep  mantle 
of  drift  in  this  vicinity  rock  outcrops  are  very  scarce. 

South  of  the  drift-covered  area  in  many  places  the  upland  soils  con¬ 
sist  of  yellow,  fine-grained,  gritty  material  designated  as  “yellow  silt  loam" 
by  the  Soil  Survey.  This  material  is  believed  to  be  in  part  loess.  In  the 
upland  area  of  Johnson  County  this  type  is  probably  more  common  than 
residual  soil. 


OIL  AND  GAS 

Relation  of  Geologic  Structure  to  Oil  and  Gas  Accumulation 

The  following  paragraphs  on  theories  of  oil  and  gas  accumulation  will 
aid  the  reader  in  understanding  the  significance  of  the  structures  to  be 
described. 

Petroleum  and  natural  gas  have  been  so  commonly  found  in  anti¬ 
clinal  structures,  as  shown  in  figure  5,  that  it  is  generally  conceded  that 
such  structures  offer  the  best  situation  for  test  wells,  and  the  search  for 
and  study  of  such  structures  have  come  to  be  the  accepted  method  of  the 
petroleum  geologist.  This  is  particularly  true  for  rocks  saturated  with 
water.  If  oil  and  water  occur  in  the  same  sand,  the  oil  is  alwavs  found 
above  the  water.  It  is  evident  that  in  an  anticline  in  which  an  impervious 
stratum  lies  above  an  oil  sand,,  the  oil,  being  lighter  than  the  water,  tends 
to  accumulate  at  the  crest  of  the  fold.  Gas,  if  present,  actually  occupies 
the  crest,  below  it  is  the  oil/ and  still  lower,  water — usually  salt  water 
(fig.  5,  A). 


Fig.  5. — Diagrammatic  cross-sections  showing  effect  of  geologic  structure  on  oil 
accumulation.  In  B  and  C  the  fault  plane  is  supposed  to  afford  a  channel  by  which 
the  oil  has  escaped,  whereas  in  D,  impervious  material  fills  the  fault  and  provides 
an  effective  seal. 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


31 


Three  important  conditions  must  be  fulfilled  if  oil  is  to  accumulate  in 
commercial  quantities  in  anticlines : 

1.  The  rocks  (or  sandstones)  that  contain  the  oil  must  be  saturated  with  water, 

as  the  oil  will  rise  in  the  rocks  only  so  far  as  it  is  buoyed  up  by  the 
underlying  water.  If  the  rocks  are  dry  the  oil  will  sink  until  it  rests 
on  water,  or  on  an  impervious  stratum.  It  may  even  be  in  the  base  of 
a  syncline. 

2.  The  anticline  must  be  tight.  That  is,  it  must  contain  a  relatively  impervious 

layer  above  the  oil  sand,  and  must  not  be  seriously  broken  by  faults  which 
would  allow  the  oil  to  escape  (fig.  5,  B). 

3.  There  must  be  a  collecting  area  of  sufficient  size  to  supply  a  considerable 

amount  of  petroleum.  The  oil  was  doubtless  originally  dispersed  through 
a  large  area,  and  has  later  collected  in  pools.  In  a  given  pool  the  amount 
of  oil  may  depend  directly  upon  the  collecting  area. 

In  a  prospective  region  the  presence  of  anticlines  is  of  great  import¬ 
ance,  but  the  amount  and  character  of  faulting  and  the  location  of  faults 
is  no  less  important.  The  effect  of  faults  in  producing  leaks  in  the  struc¬ 
ture  has  already  been  mentioned.  A  fault  below  the  crest  of  an  anticline 
may  cut  off,  or  seriously  restrict  the  collecting  area,  and  allow  only  small 
amounts  to  accumulate  (fig.  5,  C). 

Sealed  faults — that  is,  faults  so  completely  filled  with  impervious  ma¬ 
terial  as  to  offer  no  avenue  of  escape  for  oil — may  in  some  cases  afford 
important  places  for  the  accumulation  of  oil  and  gas  (fig.  5,  D). 

Some  important  oil  fields  have  been  located  where  no  structural  con¬ 
ditions  would  suggest  the  probability  of  oil,  and  no  doubt  others  will  be 
found,  but  in  the  majority  of  cases  accumulation  is  found  to  be  definitely 
related  to  structural  features.  For  this  reason  knowledge  of  the  geological 
structure  of  a  prospective  oil  region  is  eminently  desirable  and  may  save 
a  great  deal  of  unnecessary  drilling  in  unfavorable  localities.  If  oil  or 
gas  is  not  found  in  the  anticlines,  the  chance  of  finding  them  elsewhere  in 
the  region  is  comparatively  small.  On  the  other  hand,  any  number  of  dry 
wells  drilled  off  the  favorable  structures  may  give  no  information  as  to 
the  presence  or  absence  of  oil  in  the  region. 

Structural  Features  of  Area 

GOLD  HILL  FAULT 

The  Gold  FTill  fault  in  the  area  to  the  east  is  probably  the  most  strik¬ 
ing  structural  feature  of  southern  Illinois.  It  involves  beds  of  Pennsyl¬ 
vanian  and  Mississippian  age  in  a  vertical  displacement  estimated  at  1,000 
to  1,500  feet,  and  forms  the  conspicuous  range  of  hills  known  as  Gold  Hill 
and  Cave  Hill. 

In  discussing  this  fault  in  connection  with  early  studies  of  the  region. 
Cox3  says,  “Though  the  Gold  Hill  fault  disappears  beneath  the  lowlands 


3Cox,  E.  T.,  Geology  of  Saline  County:  Geological  Survey  of  Illinois  vol.  6,  p.  220. 


32 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


west  of  this  hill,  it  is  seen  again  as  a  conspicuous  ridge  of  massive  conglom¬ 
eratic  sandstone  in  the  southwestern  part  of  the  county  near  the  village 
of  Stone  Fort4”.  He  further  notes  that  “the  strata  here  present  the  ap¬ 
pearance  of  an  anticlinal  axis”.  The  correlation  of  the  structures  in  this 
region  with  the  Gold  Hill  fault  is  one  which  readily  suggests  itself,  but 
proof  is  lacking,  as  it  is  impossible  to  trace  the  effects  of  the  eastern  dis¬ 
turbance  into  the  region  covered  in  this  report. 

MCCORMICK  AND  NEW  BURNSIDE  ANTICLINES 

Two  well-marked  anticlines,  traceable  for  a  number  of  miles,  are  the 
important  structural  features  of  the  region.  Both  have  a  general  southwest- 
northeast  trend,  swinging  to  a  nearly  east-west  direction  in  the  eastern  part 
of  the  area.  They  have  been  designated  the  McCormick  and  Xew  Burn¬ 
side  anticlines,  from  localities  on  or  near  their  respective  crests  (see  Plate 

n).  "... 

The  McCormick  anticline  was  traced  from  the  vicinity  of  Gum  Springs, 
about  two  miles  north  of  Simpson,  northeastward  across  secs.  10,  3,  and  2, 
T.  12  S.,  R.  4  E.;  35  and  36,  T.  11  S.,  R.  4  E. ;  31,  30,  29,  20,  16,  15,  10, 
11,  12,  and  1,  T.  11  S.,  R.  5  E. ;  6,  5,  and  into  4,  T.  11  S.,  R.  6  E. 

The  anticline  is  in  general  not  symmetrical,  but  has  its  steeper  dip, 
ranging  up  to  50  degrees,  on  the  north  limb.  The  southward  dips  are  rarely 
over  20  degrees.  At  Gum  Springs  a  well-marked  fault  was  noted  in  the 
north  flank  about  300  yards  north  of  the  crest  of  the  fold.  The  fault  brings 
up  gently  north-dipping  Chester  limestone  and  shale  into  contact  with  the 
Pottsville  sandstone  and  conglomerate  having  a  northwest  dip  of  50  degrees 
(see  cross-section  A- A,  Plates  II  and  III).  This  fault  probably  persists 
along  the  anticline  at  least  into  sec.  35,  T.  11  S.,  R.  4  E.,  where  Chester 
limestone  is  found  in  the  bottom  of  a  stream  valley  near  the  crest  of  the 
anticline.  There  is  also  evidence  of  faulting  west  of  Flat  Rock  schoolhouse, 
where  a  nearly  vertical  dip  was  observed.  In  sec.  4,  T.  11  S.,  R.  6  E.,  and 
eastward,  considerable  faulting  has  occurred,  but  in  the  rest  of  the  struc¬ 
ture  no  positive  evidence  of  faulting  wras  found. 

The  New  Burnside  anticline  extends  from  Parker  northeastward 
through  secs.  17,  16,  9,  10,  3,  2,  and  1,  T.  11  S.,  R.  4  E.,  into  sec.  6,  T.  11  S., 
R.  5  E.,  where  the  structure  is  apparently  interrupted,  but  possibly  con¬ 
tinued  along  the  south  side  of  secs.  6,  5,  and  part  of  4.  It  is  then  resumed 
in  the  north  part  of  4,  extends  through  3,  T.  11  S.,  R.  5  E.,  34,  35,  and  36, 
T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E.,  and  with  possible  interruptions  through  31,  32,  and  33, 
T.  10  S.,  R.  6  E.  Southwest  of  Parker  the  anticline  widens  and  flattens. 
It  extends  through  secs.  18  and  19,  T.  11  S.,  R.  4  E.,  and  24  and  23,  T.  11  S., 
R.  3  E.,  beyond  which  the  structure  gradually  disappears  under  the  influ¬ 
ence  of  the  broad  uplift  to  the  southwest. 

4The  “Old  Town”,  as  it  is  now  called,  is  located  about  2J4  miles  southeast  of  the  present 
village.  To  this,  rather  than  the  present  village,  reference  is  made. 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  IT 


.  I 


LEGEND 

_  _ _ County  line 

— - Township  line 

,  ,  ,  ,  ,  Railroad 

Town 


T.10  2, 


8 

1 


Direction  of  dip  is  shown  by  the  arrow, 
the  strike  by  the  straight  line  perpen¬ 
dicular  to  the  arrow,  and  the  amount  of 
dip  by  the  figure. 


BULLETIN  NO  35.  PLATE  II 


Carriers  Mills 


Willeford 


Hudgens. 


itchellsvdlc 


Rude  meat 


Creal  Springs 


Stonefort 


anlicline 


SVM-.INKVCO.  I _ is° 

PopE  CO.  I  /' 

>riU\8J  ®  Colorado*  30  W 


WILLI  A  M  SON  CO. 
1  J < J) I  INSON  c:o. 


■8VW.& 


Del  wood 


Flat  Rock  \ 
19  School 


Burnside 


Goreville 


[cCormick 


BlancliaflJ  ] 


unnel  Hill 


Sanburn 


Ivira 


Buncombe, 


T.10S 


7.11  S 


T.12S. 


R.2  E. 


Map  of  parts  of  Saline.  Williamson.  Pope,  and  Johnson  Counties,  Illinois,  showing  geologic  structure 


SPECIAL  NOTICE 

It  is  impossible  to  predict  the  presence  of  oil  in  any  given  area  Since  in  most  fields  the 
oil  accumulates  where  the  sands  have  been  folded  upward,  and  since  the  downward  folds  or 
synclines  are  usually  filled  with  salt  water,  a  map  which  show*  the  position  of  the  beds 
previous  to  drilling  is  very  valuable  The  operator  ean  confine  his  tests  to  territory 
where  accumulation  would  take  place  if  the  other  conditions  are  favorable.  Thus  one 
clement  of  chance  is  eliminated 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 

R.2  E. 

Chamness 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


33 


Some  indications  of  continuation  of  both  structures  to  the  east  were 
noted,  but  considerable  faulting  on  a  small  scale  at  least,  is  evident  (fig.  6), 
and  this  easternmost  area  is  believed  to  be  unpromising. 

With  the  exception  of  these  two  anticlines  and  the  faulted  area  in  the 
eastern  portion,  the  structure  of  the  region  is  gently  north-dipping — in 
general,  northwestward  in  the  eastern  part  and  northeastward  in  the  west¬ 
ern  part,  with  gentle  undulations  but  no  reversed  dips.  No  effort  was 
made  to  trace  the  McCormick  anticline  into  the  limestone  area  to  the  south, 
but  the  fact  that  it  extends  into  that  area  was  established. 


r« 


Fig.  6. — Steeply  tilted  beds  in  faulted  contact  with  gently  dipping  beds  in  Dog 
Hollow,  NW.J4  sec.  11,  T.  11  S,  R.  6  E. 

Recommendations  for  Future  Drilling 

The  general  northward  dips  indicate  that  the  collecting  areas  for  the 
two  anticlines  are  chiefly  north  of  the  axes,  and  it  is  at  once  evident  that 
the  New  Burnside  anticline  has  a  very  much  greater  collecting  area  than 
the  McCormick.  This  fact,  and  the  presence  of  known  faults  in  the  lat¬ 
ter,  make  the  New  Burnside  anticline  the  more  favorable  of  the  two,  though 
the  unfaulted  portion  of  the  McCormick  anticline  may  yield  important  de¬ 
velopments.  Indeed  it  is  possible  that  the  faulting  may  not  be  sufficient 
to  seriously  affect  the  structure,  but  the  probability  is  against  this.  The 
apparently  large  collecting  area  of  the  New  Burnside  anticline  may  be  less 
than  it  appears  to  be,  as  it  is  possible  that  the  strong  Gold  Hill  faults  extend 


34 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


through  the  area  north  of  the  anticlines,  but  can  not  be  found  because 
of  the  thick  cover  of  silt  in  the  broad  valleys  of  Saline  River  and  its  trib¬ 
utaries.  Such  faults  may  so  seriously  restrict  the  collecting  areas  as  to 
prevent  the  accumulation  of  commercial  quantities  of  oil  in  the  anticlines. 

In  testing  the  field,  wells  should  be  located  near  the  crest  of  the  anti¬ 
clines,  preferably  a  little  south  of  the  crest,  because  of  the  steeper  dips  on 
the  north  limb.  (See  figure  7  and  Plate  II.)  The  areas  believed  to  be 
most  favorable  for  drilling  have  been  outlined  on  the  map.  Topographic 
conditions  must,  of  course,  be  taken  into  account,  but  in  general  the  pos¬ 
sibilities  of  a  field  are  most  surely  determined  by  drilling  the  proper  struc¬ 
tures,  without  reference  to  topography. 


Fig.  7. — Diagrammatic  cross-section  showing  proper  location  for  test  well  on  an 
unsymmetrical  anticline. 

In  studying  structures  with  a  view  to  testing  the  area  for  oil  it  is  im¬ 
portant  to  locate  any  domelike  portions  of  the  anticlines,  which  should  in 
general  be  more  favorable  than  other  points  along  the  crest  of  the  struc¬ 
ture.  Where  possible  it  is  desirable  to  construct  structure-contour  maps, 
but  in  the  present  work  the  inaccuracy  of  the  maps  available  and  the  lack 
of  any  means  of  accurately  determining  levels  would  not  justify  the  attempt. 

Two  methods  for  determining  domelike  areas  presented  themselves. 

1.  To  determine  altitudes  along  the  crest  of  the  anticline  and  location  in  the 

sections ;  then  by  assuming  an  average  thickness  for  underlying-  forma¬ 
tions  estimating  the  altitude  of  the  base  of  the  Pottsville  series. 

2.  To  study  the  data  assembled  on  the  map  with  reference  to  areas  from  which 

the  direction  of  dip  is  roughly  radial ;  such  an  area  will  be  seen  on  the 
map  in  secs.  5  and  6,  T.  11  S.,  R.  6  E. 

The  first  method  was  attempted  in  the  field,  but  the  results  are  far 
from  satisfactory.  The  difficulty  of  determining  the  position  in  the  section 


ILLINOIS  STAT] 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  III 


c 


Cvi 

c 


c 


Geologic  cross-sections  in  Pope  and  Saline  counties 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


35 


with  any  accuracy  was  almost  insuperable ;  add  to  that  the  known  variability 
in  thickness  of  the  underlying  beds  and  the  inaccuracies  of  barometer  deter¬ 
minations,  and  it  will  be  seen  that  the  results  are  no  more  than  an  extremely 
rough  estimate.  The  general  result  of  these  studies  indicated  that  both 
structures  plunge  gently  eastward,  but  undulations  along  the  axis  could  not 
be  established. 

The  second  method  strongly  suggests  a  dome  in  secs.  5  and  6,  T.  11  S., 
R.  6  E.,  as  mentioned,  one  in  secs.  33  and  34,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E.,  and  secs. 
3  and  4,  T.  11  S.,  R.  5  E.,  and  less  strongly  suggests  one  south  of  Parker 
in  sec.  17.  Similar  structures  are  vaguely  suggested  at  various  points  along 
the  crests  of  both  the  McCormick  and  New  Burnside  anticlines  in  sec.  10, 
T.  11  S.,  R.  5  E. 

Localities  Already  Tested 

It  is  stated  by  Mr.  J.  E.  Joyner  of  Stonefort,  Illinois,  that  in  drilling  a 
well  some  twenty  years  ago,  on  what  is  now  known  as  the  Royse  farm,  in 
sec.  21,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E.,  a  flow  of  oil  was  struck  at  about  180  feet.  The 
oil  is  said  to  have  flowed  for  several  hours,  but  as  water  was  desired,  drill¬ 
ing  was  resumed  and  when  water  was  struck  the  well  was  pumped  out. 
At  the  time  the  writer  visited  the  well  no  evidence  of  oil  was  seen.  A  test 
well  drilled  on  the  same  farm  in  the  summer  of  1916  yielded  salt  water, 
but  no  indications  of  oil. 

The  Warren  well  in  sec.  3,  T.  10  S.,  R.  6  E.,  was  drilled  for  oil  (fig.  8), 
and  at  1,120  feet  small  amounts  of  gas  and  oil  were  struck  with  a  flow  of 
fresh  water.  Drilling  was  continued  to  1,716  feet,  where  salt  water,  but 
no  oil,  was  obtained.  The  salt  water  was  shut  off,  and  at  present  the  well 
is  flowing,  yielding  fresh  water,  with  occasional  gas  bubbles  and  a  very  small 
amount  of  oil,  not  more  than  a  few  ounces  per  day. 

Dry  holes  have  resulted  from  drilling  at  the  following  points: 

Bynum  farm,  sec.  35,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E.  (fig.  8). 

Royse  farm,  sec.  21,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E.  (fig.  8). 

Reeves  farm,  sec.  15,  T.  11  S.,  R.  4  E. 

Allen  (  ?)  farm,  sec.  4,  T.  10  S.,  R.  2  E. 

One  reported  from  near  Creal  Springs,  sec.  17,  T.  10  S.,  R.  2  E. 

Wells  are  now  being  drilled  at  the  following  points  : 

Sec.  9,  T.  10  S„  R.  6  E. 

Sec.  23,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E. 

Sec.  9,  T.  11  S„  R.  5  E. 

Practically  all  the  dry  holes  ended  in  salt  water,  which  is  almost  uni¬ 
formly  present  in  the  deeper  strata,  and  is  not  uncommonly  encountered 
in  the  Pottsville  sandstones. 

With  the  exception  of  the  Royse  and  Warren  wells  (fig.  8),  the  writer 
has  no  information  of  oil  having  been  struck  in  wells,  nor  has  he  seen  any 
oil  seeps  or  other  surface  indications  of  oil. 


0 

100 

200 

300 

400 

500 

600 

700 

800 

900 

1000 

1100 

1200 

1300 

1400 

1500 

1600 

1700 

1800 

G.  8. 


VERTICAL  SCALE  FEET 


OIL  INVESTIGATION'S 


\ 


V/AR3EN 


'** 

H 

3 

a 

2 


S 

© 

a* 

© 


I 

I 

3 


Graphic  sections  of  the  Royse,  Bynum,  and  Warren  wells 


SALINE,  JOHNSON,  POPE,  AND  WILLIAMSON  COUNTIES 


37 


The  fact  that  the  strata  which  are  oil  bearing  in  the  main  Illinois  fields 
underlie  the  Pottsville  rocks  of  this  area  would  seem  to  justify  a  reason¬ 
able  amount  of  prospecting,  and  it  is  to  be  noted  that  none  of  the  holes 
so  far  completed  are  in  reality  favorable  locations  with  reference  to  the 
structures.  The  well  in  sec.  9,  T.  11  S.,  R.  5  E.,  and  especially  the  one 
in  sec.  33,  T.  10  S.,  R.  5  E.,  are  in  much  more  favorable  locations  and 
may  yield  important  information. 

One  adverse  feature  has  been  pointed  out  by  Professor  Stuart  Weller5. 
It  is  his  opinion  that  several  of  the  important  oil  sands  in  the  eastern  Illi¬ 
nois  fields  are  lenticular  sandstones  in  the  Renault  formation.  In  southern 
Pope  County  the  corresponding  formation  consists  entirely  of  massive 
limestone,  which  would  not  offer  a  favorable  reservoir  for  the  accumulation 
of  petroleum.  It  is  highly  probable  that  this  character  of  the  Renault  forma¬ 
tion  persists  under  the  Pottsville  series  of  this  region. 


5Oral  communication. 


PARTS  OF  WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND 
JACKSON  COUNTIES 

By  Stuart  St.  Clair 


OUTLINE 

PAGE 

Introduction  .  40 

Area  covered  by  report . 40 

Reconnaissance  methods  .  40 

Geography  .  42 

Topography  .  42 

Drainage  .  42 

Culture  .  42 

Stratigraphy  .  43 

General  relationships  .  43 

Quaternary  deposits  .  43 

Alluvium  .  43 

Valley  deposits .  43 

Loess  .  44 

Glacial  drift .  44 

Carboniferous  system .  44 

Pennsylvanian  series .  44 

Carboniferous  formation .  44 

Pottsville  formation .  44 

Mississippian  series  .  45 

Chester  group .  45 

General  relationships .  45 

Clore  formation .  46 

Palestine  formation .  46 

Menard  formation .  46 

Tar  Springs  formation .  46 

Sloans  Valley  formation .  46 

Hardinsburg  formation .  46 

Golconda  formation .  46 

Cypress  formation .  46 

Renault  formation .  47 

Ste.  Genevieve  formation  .  47 

St.  Louis  formation  .  47 

Oil  and  gas .  47 

Accumulation  of  oil  and  gas .  47 

Structure  .  48 

General  statement .  48 

Makanda  anticline . 48 

Cedar  Creek  dome .  49 

Cobden  terrace .  50 

Faults  .  51 

Unconformities  and  their  significance .  52 

Recommendations  for  drilling .  53 

Localities  already  tested .  54 


(39) 


40 


OIL  INVESTIGATION’S 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

PLATE  PAGE 

IV.  Graphic  section  showing  beds  to  be  drilled .  46 

V.  Map  of  parts  of  Williamson,  Jackson,  and  Union  counties  showing 

geologic  structure .  48 

VI.  Geologic  cross-sections  in  Williamson,  Jackson,  and  Union  counties .  50 

FIGURE 

9.  Map  showing  area  covered  by  report .  41 

10.  Pottsville  escarpment  east  of  Lick  Creek,  Union  County .  43 

11.  Uncomformity  between  the  Chester  and  Pottsville  formations  two  miles 

south  of  Pomona .  52 


INTRODUCTION 
Area  Covered  by  Report 

The  area  treated  in  this  report  lies  wholly  within  southern  Jackson, 
northern  LTiion,  and  western  Williamson  counties.  This  area  is  shown  in 
figure  9.  A  line  drawn  southeast  from  Murphysboro  through  Carbondale 
and  on  into  Williamson  County  through  Cottage  Home  and  Wolf  Creek  to 
the  county  line,  south  along  the  Union-Johnson  County  line  for  about  nine 
miles  to  Cache  River  valley,  from  there  northwest  through  Cobden  and 
Alto  Pass  to  the  county  line,  thence  north  to  Land  Ridge  and  northeast  to 
Murphysboro  would  accurately  outline  the  area  studied. 

Reconnaissance  Methods 

The  report  is  the  result  of  about  eight  weeks  of  reconnaissance  work 
in  the  southern  part  of  Illinois,  and  points  out  the  position  of  a  low  anti¬ 
clinal  fold  which  was  traced  for  eight  miles,  a  low  irregular  dome  structure 
which  covers  approximately  five  square  miles,  and  a  terrace  structure  which 
may  have  possibilities.  The  writer  was  assisted  in  the  field  work  by  Air. 
Marvin  Weller.  The  maps  used  were  United  States  post  office  maps  of 
Jackson,  Williamson  counties  and  a  land  survey  map  of  Lhiion  County. 

The  object  of  the  work  was  to  make  a  reconnaissance  examination  of 
the  assigned  territory  to  determine  the  general  structure  and  to  map  the 
position  and  extent  of  any  area  where  structural  irregularities  were  devel¬ 
oped  to  such  a  degree  that  the  accumulation  of  oil,  in  so  far  as  structure  is 
a  factor  in  this  process,  might  at  least  be  a  possibility.  From  the  character 
of  the  work  done  and  the  almost  total  lack  of  past  prospecting  the  writer 
is  able  only  to  call  attention  to  limited  areas  where  there  are  some  possibil¬ 
ities,  and  negatively  to  show  the  much  larger  area,  where  probabilities  of 
oil  accumulation  in  commercial  pools  are  entirely  lacking. 


WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


41 


Fig.  9. — Map  showing  area  covered  by  report 


42 


ON.  INVESTIGATIONS 


GEOGRAPHY 

Topography 

The  lowest  point  in  this  area  is  found  in  the  northwest  corner  where 
the  valley  bottom  of  Muddy  River  is  about  370  feet  above  sea  level.  Other 
low  areas  are  in  the  drainage  basins  of  Muddy  River  on  the  north  and 
Cache  River  on  the  south.  Jn  these  the  low  points  range  close  to  400  feet 
above  sea  level. 

The  high  points  are  along  the  divide  which  crosses  northern  Union 
County  and  which  separates  the  Muddy  basin  from  the  Cache  basin.  This 
divide  ranges  from  840  feet  above  sea  level  on  the  west  to  about  750  feet 
on  the  east.  Bald  Knob,  the  highest  point  in  the  immediate  region,  is  in 
the  extreme  southwest  part  of  the  area.  Aneroid  measurement  based  on 
the  railroad  bench  mark  at  Alto  Pass  credits  the  Knob  with  an  elevation 
of  1,050  feet. 

The  extreme  northern  part  of  the  area  is  level  prairie  land  so  typical 
of  the  greater  part  of  the  State.  Southward  this  merges  gradually  into 
a  gentle  hilly  country  broken  by  deep  ravines  and  in  places  steep  slopes. 
The  original  topography  of  this  northern  portion  of  the  area  has  been 
greatly  altered  by  a  covering  of  glacial  drift  and  wind-blown  loess,  the 
thicknesses  of  which  are  variable.  South  from  this  glacial  boundary  the 
country  is  much  more  rugged,  the  hills  are  higher,  and  the  immediate  relief 
is  greater.  The  rough  country  terminates  with  the  divide  which  irregularly 
crosses  the  northern  part  of  Union  County.  The  divide  is  formed  by  the 
northward-dipping  beds  of  the  lower  Pottsville  sandstone.  Long  spurs 
(fig.  10)  of  this  rugged  formation  extend  southward  into  a  rolling  country, 
giving  a  very  serrate  contour  to  the  divide.  The  reentrants  between  these 
arms  are  a  rolling  country  that  is  in  marked  contrast  with  the  rougher  hills. 

South  of  the  distinctive  Pottsville  topography  and  in  the  extreme 
southern  and  southeastern  part  of  the  area  the  country  is  rolling. 

Drainage 

The  master  streams  of  the  area  are  Muddy  River  on  the  north,  with 
Cedar  and  Crab  Orchard  creeks  as  main  tributaries  and  Cache  River  on 
the  south  with  Lick  and  Bradshaw  creeks  as  tributaries. 

Culture 

The  principal  towns  in  the  northern  part  of  the  area  are  Murphysboro. 
which  is  a  center  for  the  Mobile  and  Ohio  Railroad.  Illinois  Central  Rail¬ 
road,  and  St.  Louis,  Iron  Mountain,  and  Southern  Railway ;  Carbondale,  a 
railroad  center  for  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad  branches;  and  Carterville 
on  the  Illinois  Central  Railroad.  The  principal  towns  in  the  southern  part 
are  Anna  with  Illinois  Central  Railroad  connections  and  Jonesboro  on  the 
Mobile  and  Ohio  Railroad,  although  Cobden  and  Alto  Pass  are  centers  for 
large  fruit  shipments. 


WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


43 


The  chief  agricultural  products  of  the  country  are  fruits  and  sweet 
potatoes  in  the  hilly  country,  and  grains  in  the  lower  and  rolling  parts  of 
the  area.  A  large  part  of  the  area  is  too  rough  to  utilize  except  for  grazing 
purposes. 


STRATIGRAPHY 
General  Relationships 

The  consolidated  rocks  of  the  area  belong  to  the  Carboniferous  system, 
the  lower  half  of  the  Pennsylvanian  and  the  upper  half  of  the  Mississippian 
series  being  represented.  Overlying  the  consolidated  rocks  are  the  uncon- 


Fig.  10. — Pottsville  escarpment  east  of  Lick  Creek,  LInion  County. 


solidated  deposits  of  the  Quaternary  comprising  glacial  drift,  fluvio-lacu- 
strine  deposits,  loess,  and  alluvium.  A  graphic  section  showing  the  succes¬ 
sion  of  formations  and  their  general  characteristics  is  given  on  Plate  IV. 

Quaternary  Deposits 
alluvium 

Flood  plains  are  present  along  most  of  the  streams  in  the  area.  The 
deposits  are  usually  made  up  of  silt  and  clay  with  some  sand.  In  the  hilly 
part  the  alluvium  along  the  streams  is  composed  of  coarser  material,  sub- 
angular  pebbles  of  sandstone  and  shale,  sand,  and  silt. 

valley  deposits 

In  the  valleys  of  the  master  streams  are  deposits  of  fluvio-lacustrine 
material  of  two  ages.  The  lower  and  younger  deposit  consists  chiefly  of 
greenish-gray  to  purple  clay,  the  upper  part  being  concretionary.  A  little 
sand  is  present  in  places. 

The  earlier  and  topographically  higher  valley  fill  is  composed  of  clay 
and  fine  sand.  This  deposit  forms  two  fairly  well-defined  terraces,  the 
tops  of  which  are  about  410  and  390  feet,  respectively,  above  sea  level. 


44 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


LOESS  . 

Deposits  of  loess  are  found  scattered  irregularly  over  the  area,  being 
thicker  near  the  main  streams  and  Mississippi  River  than  in  the  hills  in  the 
interior  of  the  area.  The  loess  is  a  fine-grained,  massive  earth  or  loam  of 
yellowish  to  brownish  color  and  is  usually  calcareous.  A  characteristic 
weathering  feature  of  the  loess  is  its  steep  and  even  cliff-like  faces  which 
may  rise  from  a  few  feet  to  as  much  as  20  feet.  The  loess  on  the  hills  is 
of  wind-blown  origin. 


GLACIAL  DRIFT 

The  boundary  of  the  glacial  drift  is  approximately  shown  on  the  map, 
Plate  V.  The  drift  varies  in  thickness  from  place  to  place,  and  has  been 
entirely  eroded  in  some  localities.  Where  the  drift  is  thick  the  typical 
topography  of  the  underlying  rock  formation  has  been  greatly  altered  and 
the  ledge  outcrops  are  covered  except  in  some  stream  valleys. 

The  drift  is  composed  of  clay  and  pebbles,  and  decayed  bowlders  of 
varying  sizes.  The  pebbles  and  bowlders  are  of  many  kinds  of  rock,  some 
entirely  foreign  to  the  region.  A  few  glacial  bowlders  were  found  on  the 
tops  of  the  hills  as  far  south  as  the  Union  County  line. 

Carboniferous  System 

PENNSYLVANIAN  SERIES 
CARBONDALE  FORMATION 

The  Carbondale  formation  is  the  youngest  consolidated  rock  forma¬ 
tion  found  in  the  area  covered  by  this  report.  Its  upper  limit  is  defined  by 
the  top  of  coal  No.  6;  the  lower  limit,  by  the  floor  of  coal  No.  2.  The 
formation  is  composed  essentially  of  shale  containing  thin  interbedded  sand¬ 
stones.  Some  limestone  lies  in  the  upper  part,  one  bed  being  above  coal 
No.  5,  which  is  approximately  40  feet  below  coal  No.  6  in  the  immediate 
region;  a  second  limestone  is  a  little  below  coal  No.  5.  A  persistent  sand¬ 
stone  which  is  30  feet  or  more  in  thickness  is  found  about  20  feet  above  the 

.  k  . 

upper  bench  of  coal  No.  2.  Coal  No.  2  is  divided  into  two  benches  separated 
by  a  shale  parting  of  variable  thickness ;  at  one  place  near  Murphysboro  it 
is  only  a  few  feet  thick ;  a  mile  southeast  of  Carbondale  it  has  increased 
to  20  feet;  and  at  the  local  mines  3j/2  miles  southeast  of  Carbondale  the 
parting  has  increased  to  30  feet  in  thickness. 

Topographically  the  Carbondale  area  is  level  to  slightly  rolling  with  a 
few  scattered  hills  which  are  caused  by  more  resistant  sandstone  beds. 

POTTSVILLE  FORMATION 

The  Pottsville  formation  is  composed  of  thick,  cross-bedded  sandstone 
and  shale  members  interbedded  with  thinner  sandstones  and  shales.  A  few 
irregular  and  discontinuous  thin  coal  beds  lie  at  various  stratigraphic  posi- 


WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


45 


tions.  The  irregularity  of  the  strata  and  the  frequent  lateral  gradations  of 
shale  and  sandstone  made  it  impracticable  to  compile  an  accurate  section. 
No  accurate  measurement  of  the  Pottsville  formation  was  practicable  in 
the  area.  A  drill  record  north  of  Carbondale  shows  a  thickness  of  676 
feet.  Northwest  of  Murphysboro  the  formation  in  places  does  not  exceed 
420  feet  in  thickness.  East  of  the  area  covered  by  this  report,  in  northern 
Johnson  County  the  Pottsville  attains  a  thickness  of  approximately  1,000 
feet. 

In  the  northwestern  part  of  the  area  the  upper  20  to  30  feet  is  sandy 
shale  underlain  by  sandstone.  In  the  eastern  part  of  the  area  this  upper 
shale  member  thickens  materially,  probably  attaining  a  thickness  of  100 
feet  or  more.  Below  this  are  no  distinctive  members  in  the  formation  except 
in  the  vicinities  of  Pomona  and  especially  Makanda,  and  in  the  southern 
part  of  the  area.  At  the  first  two  places  a  heavy  clifif-forming  sandstone  is 
present,  the  base  of  which  is  probably  about  100  to  150  feet  above  the  base 
of  the  Pottsville.  Locally,  just  south  of  Makanda,  a  thin,  irregular  coal 
bed  is  near  the  base  of  this  member.  The  sandstone  exposure  near  Makanda 
is  over  100  feet.  In  the  southern  part  of  the  area  the  base  of  the  Pottsville 
is  distinctive,  being  a  heavy  and  at  certain  horizons  a  conglomeratic,  clifif- 
forming  sandstone  which  varies  in  thickness  from  30  feet  in  the  west  to  over 
100  feet  in  the  hills  east  of  Lick  Creek.  This  basal  member  is  responsible 
for  the  long  Pottsville  arms  which  protrude  south  into  the  Chester  area. 

Between  50  and  60  feet  below  the  top  of  the  Pottsville  occurs  a  lenti¬ 
cular  coal  bed  which  has  been  mined  in  several  localities.  Two  miles  south¬ 
west  of  Murphysboro  the  coal  is  three  feet  thick.  Pour  miles  southeast  of 
Carbondale  8  feet  of  coal  is  reported  in  a  drill  hole,  50  feet  below  the  lower 
bench  of  coal  No.  2.  Other  lenticular  but  thin  coal  beds  outcrop  at  several 
other  lower  positions  in  this  formation. 

The  Pottsville  rests  unconformably  upon  the  Chester.  One  of  the 
causes  of  variation  in  thickness  of  the  Pottsville  is  the  irregular  surface 
upon  which  the  basal  sediments  were  deposited.  The  possibility  of  accumu¬ 
lation  of  oil  and  gas  in  certain  sandstone  horizons  of  the  Pottsville  where 
structural  conditions  are  favorable  is  of  economic  interest  and  importance. 
In  the  Lawrence  County  field  the  Buchanan  sand  is  in  the  basal  part  of  this 
formation. 


MISSISSIPPIAN  SERIES 
CHESTER  GROUP 

General  relationships. — Wherever  observed  the  upper  formation  of  the 
Chester  group  was  the  Clore.  On  account  of  the  erosional  unconformity 
at  the  top  of.  the  Chester  the  thickness  of  the  Clore  necessarily  varies  from 
place  to  place.  The  whole  formation  may  be  absent  in  some  localities,  and 
the  Pottsville  rest  directly  upon  the  Palestine  sandstone,  the  formation 


46 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


which  underlies  the  Clore.  The  succession  of  Chester  formations  and  thick¬ 
ness  are  given  on  Plate  IV.  An  erosional  break  exists  between  nearly 
every  two  adjacent  Chester  formations,  but  practically  all  these  irregularities 
are  comparatively  small.  In  the  Lawrence  County  oil  field  the  Chester 
group  contains  the  “Gas”,  Kirkwood,  and  Tracey  sands. 

Clore  formation. — The  Clore  formation  as  exposed  in  the  southern 
part  of  the  area  varies  from  80  to  110  feet  in  thickness.  It  may  be  much 
thinner  underneath  the  Pottsville  to  the  north  of  the  outcrop.  The  forma¬ 
tion  comprises  limestone  and  shale  members  with  thinner  interbedded  shaly 
limestone  and  shale.  The  shales  are  typically  red  and  green  in  color. 

Palestine  formation. — The  Palestine  is  essentially  a  sandstone  forma¬ 
tion.  Typical  exposures  for  the  area  may  be  seen  about  three  miles  east 
of  Cobden.  The  formation  here  comprises  an  upper  member  of  white, 
medium-grained,  cliff-forming  sandstone  about  50  feet  in  thickness,  and  a 
lower  member  of  thin-bedded,  brownish  sandstone  interbedded  with  sandy 
shale,  about  30  feet  thick. 

Menard  formation. — The  Menard  formation  is  composed  of  limestone 
and  shale  beds.  Much  of  the  limestone  is  shaly,  and  the  shale  contains 
limestone  lenses  and  some  concretions.  The  limestone  is  dark  colored  and 
near  the  base  contains  considerable  dark  chert.  The  thickness  is  approxi¬ 
mately  150  feet. 

Tar  Springs  formation. — The  Tar  Springs  formation  is  principally 
sandstone.  In  places  sandy  shales  are  interbedded  with  the  thicker  sand¬ 
stones.  The  latter  is  much  cross-bedded  locally.  The  thickness  is  probably 
between  125  and  150  feet. 

Sloans  Valley  formation. — The  Sloans  Valley  formation  is  composed 
of  interbedded  limestones  and  shales.  What  is  probably  Sloans  Y alley, 
but  is  possibly  Golconda,  outcrops  in  the  southern  part  of  the  area.  The 
thickness  seen  was  not  over  50  feet  and  was  chiefly  limestone. 

Hardinsburg  formation. — The  Hardinsburg  formation  is  a  moderately 
fine-grained,  yellowish-brown  sandstone.  It  was  not  recognized  in  the 
section  in  the  southern  part  of  the  area.  It  may  or  may  not  be  penetrated 
by  the  drill  north  of  the  Chester  area. 

Golconda  formation. — The  Golconda  formation  is  principally  lime¬ 
stone.  Some  shale  which  is  variable  in  color  and  character  is  found.  A 
red  shale  has  been  seen  locally.  What  was  tentatively  thought  to  be  Sloans- 
Valley  may  be  part  of  the  Golconda  formation.  The  thickness,  however,  is 
probably  not  much  more  than  50  feet. 

Cypress  formation. — The  Cypress  is  chiefly  a  sandstone  formation, 
although  in  the  lower  part  is  a  sandy,  greenish  shale  which  may  have  a 
limestone  bed  in  the  middle.  The  sandstone  is  fine  grained  and  yellowish 
brown  in  color.  The  upper  sandstone  forms  cliffs  in  places.  The  thick¬ 
ness  is  between  100  and  150  feet. 


VERTICAL  SCALE  IN  FEET 


ILLINOIS 

0 

100 

200 

300 

400 

600 

600 

700 

800 

900 

1000 

■  1100 

-  1200 

-  1300 

-  1400 

-  1500 

■  1600 

-  1700 

-  1800 


STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  IV 


LEGEND 


V/7/77777, 

Red  shale 


Shale 


Sandy  shale 


Sand 


Limestone 


Shaly  limestone 


Chert 


Coal 


§ 


£ 

Co 

I 


Pottsville 


>- 


SO 

S3 

S 

63 

«0 


> 


T 


Clore 


Palestine 


Menard 


i  < 


13 

Co 

CO 


0. 

3 

0 

0 

0:  ^ 

uj  ' 
K 
<0 
Ul 
i 

o 


Tar  Springs 


’>////>///!& 


i - r 


I  ...—I 


i  1  i  -G- 


TTTfx 


Sloans  Valley 


Hardinsburg 


Golconda 


Cypress 


Renault 


r 


a» 

> 


Ohara 
Rosiclare^t 


S< 

<D 

0 

C/) 


Fredonia 


i  "i - :r 


Thin-bedded  sandstone  and  sandy  shale,  thickens 
in  eastern  part  of  area 

Pocket  coal  bed,  discontinuous 


^Interbedded  sandstones  and  sandy  shale  with  a 
few  discontinuous  thin  coal  beds 


Mokanda  sandstone  member 


Heavy-bedded,  conglomeratic,  escarpment-forming 
sandstone ;  may  be  thin  and  shaly  in  places 


Interbedded  limestone  with  some  chert  and  red 
and  green  shales 


Fine-grained,  yellowish-brown  sandstone,  shaly  in 
the  lower  part 


Blue-black  limestone  with  shale  partings 


Sandy,  olive  green  bed 

Blue-black,  nearly  black  limestone  with  much  dark 
chert 


Yellowish  brown,  becoming  reddish  in  places.  Lo¬ 
cally  a  shale  has  been  seen  somewhat  above 
middle.  Contains  tar  springs,  Breckenridge 
County,  Kentucky. 


Interbedded  limestones  and  shales 


Moderately  fine-grained  yellowish-brown  sand¬ 
stone 


Limestones  and  shales,  variable  in  color  and  char¬ 
acter.  A  red  shale  has  been  seen  in  places. 
From  100-300  feet 


Fine-grained,  yellowish-brown  sandstone 


Shale,  sandy,  greenish,  limestone  bed  in  middle 
Like  upper  part  of  Cypress 

Limestone  with  interbedded  shales;  from  80-100 
feet 

Limestone,  oolitic  to  dense 

The  oolite  is  in  position  of  McClosky  sand  of  main 
Illinois  oil  field 


Graphic  section  showing  beds  to  be  penetrated  in  drilling 


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WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


47 


Renault  formation. — The  Renault  comprises  interbedded  limestones  and 
shales.  The  limestone  is  quite  variable  in  both  character  and  composition. 
The  shales  are  both  clayey  and  sandy  and  green,  blue,  or  purple  in  color. 
It  contains  some  oolitic  limestones  and  limestone  conglomerate  beds.  The 
thickness  is  about  100  feet. 

STE.  GENEVIEVE  LIMESTONE 

The  Ste.  Genevieve  formation  is  made  up  almost  entirely  of  limestone, 
some  of  which  is  oolitic.  Near  the  middle  of  the  formation  in  the  Lawrence 
County  field  an  oolite  bed  produces  large  quantities  of  oil.  It  is  in  the  posi¬ 
tion  of  the  McClosky  sand  in  Illinois.  The  thickness  of  the  formation  in 
this  area  is  about  80  feet. 

ST.  LOUIS  LIMESTONE 

The  St.  Louis  formation  is  composed  of  hard,  dense  limestone  and  con¬ 
siderable  chert.  The  top  of  this  formation  should  limit  any  drilling  opera¬ 
tions  in  the  district. 


OIL  AND  GAS 
Accumulation  of  Oil 

Oil  as  it  is  formed  in  the  sediments  is  in  so  disseminated  a  condition 
that  it  has  no  economic  value,  but  through  the  factors  that  cause  circulation 
the  oil  gathers  into  pools  of  such  size  that  commercial  exploitation  is  made 
possible.  To  assure  such  circulation  a  porous  stratum  is  essential;  sand¬ 
stones  are  the  most  favorable  strata  for  this  movement.  Another  important 
requirement  is  that  the  porous  stratum  must  have  an  impervious  cap  rock. 
Without  this  condition  all  the  lighter  constituents  of  the  petroleum  would 
escape  and  leave  only  the  heavier  and  less  valuable  materials. 

Numerous  geologic  structures  are  favorable  for  the  accumulation  of 
oil  and  gas.  In  the  area  described  in  this  report  only  a  few  of  these  type 
structures  were  found  and  therefore  only  these  will  be  mentioned.  They 
are  the  anticline,  the  dome,  the  terrace,  and  combinations  of  these  types  of 
structure. 

After  the  geologic  structure  is  known,  the  next  factor  to  be  determined 
is  the  degree  of  saturation  of  the  rocks.  Oil  and  gas  will  appear  only  as 
high  in  a  structure  as  is  the  level  of  the  water  in  the  oil-bearing  stratum  or 
strata.  If  the  oil  sand  is  completely  saturated  the  oil  or  gas,  or  both,  will 
be  found  in  the  higher  parts  of  the  structure,  the  gas  being  above,  the  oil 
next,  and  water  below.  If  the  oil  sand  is  dry,  the  accumulation  will  be  in 
the  lowest  structure  or  syncline.  If  the  oil  sand  is  partly  saturated  the  oil 
and  gas  will  rise  to  an  elevation  in  the  structure  dependent  upon  the  height 
of  the  water  and  the  amount  of  oil  and  gas  trapped  in  the  structure. 

Diagrammatic  cross-sections  showing  the  effect  of  certain  geologic 
structures  on  oil  accumulation  are  given  in  figure  5  of  the  preceding  paper 
in  this  bulletin. 


48 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


It  should  be  made  clear  that  in  addition  to  these  general  laws  there  are 
numerous  factors  which  may  arise  that  make  each  region,  almost  each  local¬ 
ity,  a  special  problem.  Such  things  as  irregularity  in  sedimentation  during 
the  deposition  of  the  various  sands  whereby  a  given  oil-bearing  stratum 
may  thin  or  pinch  out  entirely,  differential  cementation  of  parts  of  the 
oil  sand,  unconformities  between,  and  in  cases  within,  the  various  forma¬ 
tions,  and  varying  depths  to  the  sands  at  different  localities  are  conditions 
that  can  be  determined  only  by  a  very  careful  study  of  a  region  and  of 
each  particular  locality. 

Structure 

GENERAL  STATEMENT 

The  general  structure  of  the  rocks  in  southern  Illinois  is  a  gentle  dip 
north  and  northeast  toward  the  center  of  the  Illinois  basin  which  lies  in 
Wayne,  Hamilton,  White,  and  Edwards  counties.  The  general  dip  is  inter¬ 
rupted  in  many  places  by  small  irregularities  which  are  the  result  of  earth 
movements  in  past  ages.  The  lines  along  which  the  more  pronounced  dis¬ 
turbances  have  taken  place  mark,  in  many  cases,  old  shore-lines  of  previous 
geologic  periods.  This  interpretation  may  aid  us  in  accounting  for  the 
irregular  character  and  thickness  of  the  various  beds  penetrated  with  the 
drill  in  prospecting  for  oil.  Many  of  the  smaller  irregularities  have  been 
formed  as  a  result  of  the  larger  disturbances  and,  therefore,  parallel  them 
in  many  cases. 

MAKANDA  ANTICLINE 

The  Makanda  anticline  is  shown  on  Plates  V  and  VI.  It  extends  from 
a  point  one-half  mile  west  of  Makanda,  in  the  SW.  %.  sec.  28,  T.  10  S., 

R.  1  W.,  in  a  general  east-northeast  direction  to  the  NE.  Vt  sec.  22,  T.  10 

S. ,  R.  1  E.,  a  point  1%.  miles  southeast  of  Cottage  Home.  The  length  is 
about  eight  miles.  The  full  lines  marking  the  axis  of  the  anticline  show 
areas  where  outcrops  made  the  location  of  the  structure  relatively  accur¬ 
ate  ;  the  broken  lines  cover  areas  where  practically  all  rock  outcrops  are 
hidden  beneath  drift  and  loess.  However,  the  anticline  is  probably  con¬ 
tinuous.  It  is  wholly  within  the  Pottsville  area. 

Both  limbs  of  the  anticline  dip  gently,  and  the  axis  pitches  to  the 
northeast  with  the  regional  dip.  The  axis,  however,  apparently  has  high 
and  low  areas  making  a  series  of  low,  elongate  domes. 

The  arch  is  so  low  and  the  sides  dip  so  gently  that  the  structure  has 
had  practically  no  effect  upon  the  development  of  the  topography.  The 
west  and  east  ends  of  the  anticline  are  in  rough  country,  the  heavy  sand¬ 
stones  having  been  deeply  eroded.  The  sandstones  of  these  two  parts  of 
the  anticline  are  at  different  stratigraphic  positions.  The  one  at  the  east 
end  is  much  higher  in  the  Pottsville  formation  than  the  Makanda  sand- 


LEGEND 


# 

•420 


County  line 


Township  line 


Railroad 


Town  location 


Llfvnlinn  at  tnum 


Scale  of  miles 
2  3 


/i 


i 


Williamson,  Jackson,  ant 


II.I.IVOJS  STATF.  (. F-OI/V.KAI  Sl'RVF.Y 


mm  FT  IN  NO  is,  1H.ATK  V 


MLRRHYSBt 


i  Carle i“vi  L< 


,llinois 


Sand  Ridge 


Ciirbondale 


Approxin^ 


C^lage  lU. 


W  )lf  Creek 


.1.1  A  M  SON 

x.jn|ion 


Q(  )UN  1  V 

CUIINTY 


JACKSCl^ 

OnToFj 


Progress 
1 8  m 


Oakville 


ies]er<?°' 


/-x  21 


®  29 

Cobden 


k  Creek 


Ihuer 


i  narry 


JONESBORO 


R.2  W. 


Scale  ol  miles 

0  1  2  3  4  5 


LEGEND 

**  l  ouuly  line 

- —  Township  line 

1  *’*“4  Hails  stall 

%  Tim  n  liHiliusi 

**0  lflfvallmi  oi  i 


T.9S 


nil  m  Ilois  III  slip  I. 
ellllWII  l‘l  sill’  HI 

*  Is  e  *1  s  n  lull  I  line 
peipcmllcmili  i  n 
ilic  isiiiisv,  mill  llle 
. . .  «li|.  I.. 


T.  10  S. 


I'-nill  line,  in  i  nsv  III 
■  Hi  III*  illim  I  lull  nl 


T.l  1  S. 


T.12S 


R1  E 


Map  of  pan*  of  Williamson.  Jack-on.  and  Union  counties 


WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


49 


stone.  Between  the  rough  areas  near  the  two  ends  the  country  is  hilly 
and  rolling,  the  sandstone  beds  being  relatively  thin. 

One  of  the  high  areas  on  the  Makanda  anticline  is  near  the  town  of 
Makanda.  As  shown  on  the  map,  this  area  extends  from  the  east  side  of 
section  28  to  the  northeast  side  of  section  27,  a  distance  of  about  one  mile. 
The  highest  point  is  probably  close  to  the  north  center  of  the  SW.  J4, 
section  27  on  the  east  side  of  the  railroad.  At  this  point  the  arch  is  prob¬ 
ably  about  60  feet  in  height,  an  amount  which  shows  a  very  low  anticlinal 
fold. 

In  the  NE.  ^4  section  27  the  sandstone  dips  several  degrees  to  the 
northeast.  From  this  point  to  the  NE.  ^4  section  26  there  is  a  low  area 
on  the  anticline.  On  the  map  this  is  shown  as  a  less  favorable  area.  From 
the  NE.  4j  sec.  26,  T.  10  S.,  R.  1  W.,  to  the  north  center  sec.  19,  T.  10 
S.,  R.  1  E.,  the  relations  of  high  and  low  areas  could  not  be  determined. 
However,  general  conditions  point  to  the  existence  of  a  slightly  higher  area 
over  this  distance. 

From  the  north  center  of  section  19  to  the  NW.  J4  section  21  the  axis 
of  the  anticline  is  probably  lower  than  to  the  east  or  west.  The  high  area 
at  the  eastern  end  of  the  anticline  extends  from  the  NW.  *4  section  21 
to  the  north  center  of  section  22.  The  highest  point  is  where  Big  Grassy 
Creek  cuts  across  the  anticline  in  the  NE.  %  section  21.  East  of  this 
area  the  anticline  dips  to  the  east,  and,  owing  to  the  topography,  could  not 
be  traced  farther. 

The  thickness  of  the  Pottsville,  or  depth  to  the  Chester  beds,  along 
the  Makanda  anticline  is  variable ;  the  least  distance  to  these  beds  would 
be  at  the  western  end,  the  greatest  at  the  eastern  end,  a  condition  due 
entirely  to  the  regional  dip.  In  the  stream  valley  near  Makanda  probably 
less  than  100  feet  of  Pottsville  would  have  to  be  penetrated  before  reach¬ 
ing  the  Chester  limestone.  On  the  surrounding  hills  the  depth  to  the  Ches¬ 
ter  would  be  greater  according  to  the  location  chosen.  In  the  stream  valley 
which  crosses  the  high  area  at  the  eastern  end  of  the  anticline  close  to 
600  feet  of  the  Pottsville  formation  would  have  to  be  penetrated  before 
the  Chester  limestone  would  be  reached.  Between  these  two  areas  the 
thickness  of  the  Pottsville  would  vary  proportionately. 

CEDAR  CREEK  DOME 

The  Cedar  Creek  dome  occupies  approximately  the  center  of  the 
square  formed  by  lines  drawn  between  the  towns  of  Pomona  and  Etherton 
on  the  west,  and  Makanda  and  Boskydell  on  the  east.  The  dome  lies 
principally  within  secs.  11,  12,  13,  14,  23,  24,  25,  and  26,  T.  10  S.,  R. 
2  W.  (See  Plates  V  and  VI.) 

The  Cedar  Creek  dome  is  an  irregular  structure  and  is  elongate  in  a 
north-south  direction.  The  creek  apparently  has  cut  the  dome  along  the 


50 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


axis.  The  topography  is  very  rough,  sandstone  cliffs  rising  above  the 
•creek  on  both  sides  to  a  height  of  over  100  feet.  The  creek  bends  west 
just  a  little  south  of  the  high  point  at  the  northern  end  of  the  dome.  In 
pre-glacial  time  this  bend  of  Cedar  Creek  was  about  one-fourth  mile  north 
of  the  present  bend.  ^  The  road  which  runs  west  to  the  south  center  of 
section  11  approximately  follows  the  pre-glacial  channel  of  the  stream. 
The  drift  deposited  by  the  glacier,  which  is  thick  in  the  central  and  north¬ 
ern  half  of  section  12,  dammed  the  stream  and  caused  it  to  cut  a  new 
channel  westward  in  the  southwest  corner  of  section  12.  The  branch 
which  flows  from  the  south  through  sections  14  and  13  has  a  fall  of  about 
50  feet  where  it  empties  into  Cedar  Creek  and  the  topographic  expression 
along  its  course  is  in  marked  contrast  to  that  of  the  older  and  larger  stream. 
A  shallow  syncline  is  present  in  the  northeastern  corner  of  the  dome  ex¬ 
tending  from  the  NE.  *4  section  13  to  the  south  center  section  12.  The 
high,  cliff-surrounded  ridge  separating  Cedar  Creek  proper  and  the  eastern 
branch,  which  bends  in  through  section  12,  outlines  the  synclinal  structure. 
It  is  clear  that  the  courses  of  the  pre-glacial  parts  of  the  stream  system  in 
the  immediate  area  followed  the  high  parts  of  the  structure.  A  small  shal¬ 
low  synclinal  trough  is  also  present  on  the  west  side  of  the  dome  in  sec¬ 
tion  14. 

Probably  the  maximum  dip  of  any  side  of  the  dome  is  about  3  degrees, 
although  locally  there  may  be  a  few  places  where  this  figure  is  exceeded. 
The  average  dip  of  the  steepest  part  of  the  structure  will  not  exceed  2 
•degrees.  The  height  of  the  dome,  therefore,  probably  does  not  exceed  100 
feet  at  any  point,  and  in  some  parts  it  is  much  less  than  100  feet. 

The  shallow  syncline  in  sections  12  and  13  is  of  such  minor  proportions 
that  it  would  probably  have  but  small  influence  upon  the  larger  and  general 
relations  of  the  structure.  The  small  syncline  in  section  14  should  be 
avoided  in  the  initial  prospecting  of  the  dome. 

COBDEN  TERRACE 

The  Cobden  terrace,  shown  on  Plates  V  and  VI,  is  an  irregular  struc¬ 
ture  which  lies  about  three  miles  east  of  Cobden.  Only  reconnaissance 
work  was  done  on  the  area,  no  levels  having  been  run  on  any  horizon, 
and,  therefore,  the  writer  wishes  only  to  call  attention  to  the  area  as  a 
possible  structure  which  may  possess  some  attractive  features. 

At  least  a  partially  developed  terrace  lies  within  the  escarpment  hills 
the  western  boundary  of  which  is  the  ridge  running  northeast  through  secs. 
29,  20,  19,  and  18,  T.  11  S.,  R.  1  E.  The  southern  boundary  follows 
approximately  the  county  road  from  the  SW.  corner  sec.  27,  T.  11  S.,  R. 
1  W.,  to  Pleasant  Hill  School,  west  center  sec.  29,  T.  11  S.,  R.  1.  E. 
The  northern  boundary  is  about  at  the  divide  in  the  north  center  sec. 
13,  T.  11  S.,  R.  1  W.  Part  of  the  evidence  used  in  determining  this  struc- 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


Feet 

400 

300 

200 

100 

0 


A 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  VI 


Geologic  cross-sections  in  Williamson,  Jackson,  and 


Union  counties 


WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


5 1 


ture  is  based  upon  the  approximate  elevations  on  the  Pottsville-Chester 
contact  which  is  an  unconformable  one.  However,  throughout  the  region 
the  thickness  of  the  upper  formation  of  the  Chester,  the  Clore,  did  not 
show  a  variation  of  over  30  feet,  a  characteristic  that  shows  that,  the  un¬ 
conformity,  at  least  for  this  area,  is  not  very  pronounced. 

The  most  pronounced  dips  are  shown  in  the  Palestine  formation  in 
secs.  27  and  SW.  %  sec.  23,  where  the  sandstone  forms  an  escarpment.  Dips 
as  high  as  8  degrees  are  displayed  in  places,  although  the  average  is  close 
to  3  degrees.  The  prevailing  direction  of  dip  is  west  and  a  little  north  of 
west. 

To  the  north  of  the  terrace  the  strata  dip  gently  to  the  north  and  east 
of  north ;  on  the  east,  the  beds  dip  gently  to  the  east  and  northeast. 

Attention  is  called  to  the  following  minor  irregularities  more  for  their 
physical  features  than  for  their  possible  value  as  oil  structures.  Should 
the  sand  formations  underlying  the  more  pronounced  structures  of  the 
region  prove  to  be  oil  bearing,  further  and  more  detailed  consideration 
should  then  be  given  to  the  minor  structures. 

In  T.  11  S.,  R.  1  E.,  is  a  very  small  fold  which  starts  approximately  at 
the  center  of  section  14,  curves  slightly  northwest,  then  west  to  the  center 
of  section  15,  and  then  curves  northwest  to  the  SE.  *4  section  9. 

In  the  south  center  of  sec.  4,  east  half  sec.  8,  and  NW.  half  sec.  9, 
T.  11  S.,  R.  1  W.,  is  a  low,  partial  doming  of  the  rocks.  To  the  south 
and  east  the  structure  is  indefinite. 

A  somewhat  similar,  irregularly  shaped,  low,  partial  doming  is  to  be 
seen  in  the  south  half  of  sec.  33,  T.  10  S.,  R.  1  W. 

In  T.  9  S.,  R.  2  W.,  a  small  terrace  extends  from  the  center  of  section 
16  west  to  the  center  of  section  17,  thence  northwest  to  the  section  line. 

faults 

The  faults  which  were  found  in  this  area  are  too  far  removed  from 
the  structures  described  to  have  any  effect  upon  the  possible  accumulation  of 
oil  in  these  particular  structures.  The  usual  effect  of  faulting  is  to  lessen 
the  probability  of  oil  accumulation.  Where  the  strata  have  been  broken 
there  are  avenues  of  escape  for  the  hydrocarbons.  However,  in  some 
localities  faulting  has  produced  the  opposite  effect.  The  fault  planes  may 
be  sealed  by  the  shearing  and  by  the  metamorphism  resulting  from  the 
movement  thereby  causing  a  ponding  of  the  oil  on  the  down-dip  side  of 
the  fault. 

No  faulting  was  found  which  might  affect  accumulation  in  either  the 
Makanda  anticline  or  the  Cedar  Creek  dome.  A  small  fault  is  thought  to 
be  present  at  the  extreme  southwest  corner  of  the  Cobden  terrace.  Its 
influence,  however,  is  considered  negligible. 

The  large  fault  in  the  southwestern  part  of  the  area  is  of  regional 
importance.  Its  location  on  the  map  is  only  approximate,  the  intention 


52 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


being-  simply  to  show  the  general  relations  of  the  structure.  The  rocks 
on  the  south  side  of  the  fault  belong  to  very  much  older  formations  than 
those  on  the  north  side.  In  the  former  are  represented  Devonian  and 
lower  Mississippian ;  in  the  latter  Chester  and  Pennsylvanian. 

The  smaller  faults  which  were  encountered  in  the  reconnaissance  of 
the  area  are  recorded  on  the  map,  hut  no  effort  was  made  to  trace  them 
for  any  distance.  Their  displacements  are  thought  to  he  small  in  all  cases. 

UNCONFORMITIES  AND  THEIR  SIGNIFICANCE 

Unconformities  exist  between  most  of  the  formations  found  in  this 
area.  However,  the  only  important  one  is  recorded  between  the  Chester 
group  and  the  Pottsville  formation  of  the  Pennsylvanian  series.  No  great 


Fig.  11. — Unconformity  between  the  Chester  and  Pottsville  formations  two  miles 
south  of  Pomona. 


amount  of  erosion  and  probably  no  folding  took  place  at  the  breaks  recorded 
between  the  various  Chester  formations.  Therefore  these  formations  should 
be  uniformly  regular  in  their  thicknesses  and  the  strata  of  each  formation 
practically  parallel  with  the  underlying  or  overlying  strata. 

The  break  between  the  Chester  and  Pottsville  was  marked  by  both 
erosion  and  folding.  The  amount  of  erosion  has  been  considerable 
in  many  places.  In  the  area  described  in  this  report  the  erosion  of  the  upper 
Chester  formation,  the  Clore,  was  relatively  slight,  a  variation  in  thickness 
of  only  30  or  40  feet  being  recorded.  This  estimate  has  been  gathered 
both  from  outcrops  of  the  Clore  and  from  the  few  drill  records  available  in 
the  area. 


WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


53 


Striking  discordances  of  dip  were  found  in  only  two  places  in  the  area 
described  in  this  report.  Near  the  center  of  sec.  33,  T.  10  S.,  R.  2  W., 
along  the  Mobile  and  Ohio  tracks,  a  small  fault,  producing  steeply  dipping 
beds  is  recorded  in  the  Clore  formation.  Overlying  the  Clore  the  basal 
beds  of  the  Pottsville  are  undisturbed  (fig.  11).  The  second  discordance 
is  shown  in  the  dips  of  the  Palestine  and  Pottsville  sandstones  at  the 
southwest  corner  of  the  Cobden  terrace,  in  the  NE.  *4  sec.  27,  T.  11  S., 
R.  1  W.  Both  sandstones  form  escarpments  which  are  close  together. 
The  Palestine  has  a  dip  of  8  to  9  degrees  westward  and  the  overlying  Potts- 
viile  has  a  dip  of  only  3  degrees. 

The  existence  of  this  structural  discordance  between  Chester  and 
Pottsville  is  emphasized  so  that  caution  should  be  exercised  in  drilling  low 
structures  which  are  recorded  in  the  Pennsylvanian  rocks.  Although  only 
minor  differences  in  the  attitude  or  lay  of  the  rocks  of  the  two  series  have 
been  shown  to  exist  where  geological  data  are  available,  there  is  the 
possibility  of  such  irregularities  being  present  and  offsetting  the  value  of 
later  folding  in  the  higher  rocks.  In  pronounced  structures  such  as  are 
found  in  Johnson  and  Pope  counties  the  slight  structure  of  the  Chester 
may  be  considered  negligible,  but  in  low  structures  such  as  are  described 
in  this  report,  the  influence  which  may  be  exerted  by  pre-Pennsylvanian 
structure  should  be  given  due  consideration. 

Recommendations  for  Drilling 

The  Survey  does  not  pretend  to  predict  the  presence  of  commercial 
oil  and  gas  in  this  region.  Furthermore,  the  structure  is  extremely  mild 
as  compared  with  that  farther  east  in  Williamson  and  Saline  counties. 

If  oil  should  be  developed  in  either  the  New  Burnside  or  the  Mc¬ 
Cormick  anticlines,  described  in  the  second  part  of  this  bulletin,  the  struc¬ 
tures  mentioned  herein,  would  be  worthy  of  conservative  exploration. 

The  beds  to  be  penetrated  in  this  area  are  part  of  the  Pottsville  forma¬ 
tion  and  the  Chester  formations.  The  lower  limit  should  be  the  oolitic 
beds  of  the  Ste.  Genevieve. 

On  the  Makanda  anticline  near  the  west  end,  should  drilling  be  done 
in  the  stream  valley  which  crosses  the  anticline,  probably  not  more  than 
100  feet  of  Pottsville  would  be  encountered.  The  approximate  depths  of 
the  Chester  horizons  below  this  are  shown  on  the  graphic  section  (Plate 
IV).  At  any  point  on  the  surrounding  hills  the  depths  would  be  increased 
according  to  increase  of  the  topographic  elevation.  East  of  Makanda  on 
the  anticline  the  thickness  of  the  Pottsville  which  must  be  penetrated  by 
the  drill  increases  proportionately  until  at  the  eastern  end  the  depth  to  the 
Chester  limestone  is  about  600  feet. 


54 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


On  the  Cedar  Creek  dome  drilling  in  the  stream  valley  would  encounter 
probably  not  more  than  100  feet  of  Pottsville.  On  the  higher  elevations  the 
depths  would  be  proportionately  greater. 

On  the  Cobden  terrace  the  minimum  depth  of  drilling  in  the  entire 
area  would  penetrate  all  the  possible  Chester  oil  horizons.  Depths  of  from 
700  to  950  feet,  according  to  the  location  chosen,  would  reach  the  oolitic 
Ste.  Genevieve  beds. 

The  Chester  formations  probably  vary  in  thickness  and  character  in 
different  parts  of  the  area.  The  graphic  section  (PI.  IV)  is  given  merely 
as  a  guide.  Although  the  Hardinsburg  sandstone  and  the  Golconda  lime¬ 
stone  were  not  recognized  in  the  southern  part  of  the  area  where  they 
should  outcrop,  they  may  be  encountered  by  the  drill  farther  north.  Their 
thicknesses,  however,  should  not  be  very  great. 

Any  sandstone  that  is  continuous  in  its  distribution  toward  the  region 
from  where  the  oil  is  supposed  to  have  migrated — in  this  case  the  central 
Illinois  basin — and  that  is  not  too  closely  cemented,  can  be  regarded  as  a 
possible  oil  horizon.  The  Chester  formations  thin  northward,  some  pinch¬ 
ing  out  probably  before  the  central  Illinois  basin,  which  lies  approximately 
in  the  vicinity  of  southern  Wayne  County,  is  reached.  Since  it  is  impos¬ 
sible  to  determine  which  one  of  the  Chester  sandstones  may  be  thus  affected, 
all  the  sandstone  horizons  which  underlie  the  area  described  herein  may,, 
for  the  present,  be  regarded  as  possible  oil  sands.  There  are  four  produc¬ 
ing  Chester  sands  in  the  Lawrence-Crawford  County  oil  field  and  as  many 
may  be  present  in  this  region.  Where  the  Pottsville  has  sufficient  thick¬ 
ness,  oil  may  also  be  found  at  favorable  positions  within  the  formation. 

Since  the  structures  described  are  low  and  the  dips  small,  test  wells 
should  be  located  with  great  care.  The  highest  parts  of  the  Makanda  anti¬ 
cline  should  be  tested  first.  If  this  be  done  and  the  rocks  found  to  be  dry, 
or  to  contain  a  little  gas,  the  drill  should  be  moved  a  little  lower  down  the 
dip  of  the  limbs  or  pitch  of  the  anticline  until  either  oil  or  salt  water  is 
encountered  in  the  various  sand  horizons. 

On  the  Cedar  Creek  dome  the  highest  part  should  be  the  first  chosen. 
This  is  approximately  along  the  course  of  Cedar  Creek  except  in  a  small 
area  in  the  SW.  Ct  section  12,  where  the  course  of  the  pre-glacial  stream 
probably  follows  the  higher  part.  Similar  methods  to  those  described 
above  should  be  used  to  locate  the  upper  and  lower  limits  of  the  possible 
oil  pool. 

On  the  Cobden  terrace,  because  of  its  irregularities,  more  detailed 
work  should  be  done  before  a  location  is  selected  for  a  test  well. 

Localities  Already  Tested 

A  drill  hole  was  put  down  near  the  center  of  section  16,  T.  10  S.,. 
P.  1  W.,  2p2  miles  north  of  Makanda,  to  a  depth  of  390  feet.  The  for- 


WILLIAMSON,  UNION,  AND  JACKSON  COUNTIES 


55 


mations  penetrated  were  the  Pottsville,  composed  of  sandstone  and  sandy 
shale  to  a  depth  of  305  feet,  and  the  Clore  limestone,  the  drilling  having 
been  discontinued  after  going  85  feet  into  this  formation. 

A  test  well  for  oil  was  drilled  in  the  extreme  NE.  cor.  sec.  16,  T.  11 
S.,  R.  1  W.,  about  3  miles  northeast  of  Cobden,  to  a  depth  of  1,240  feet. 
The  location  was  practically  at  the  base  of  the  Pottsville,  so  the  beds 
penetrated  were  Chester  and  lower.  From  the  log  of  the  well  it  is  probable 
that  the  drill  passed  through  the  St.  Louis  cherty  formation  and  stopped 
in  the  Salem  limestone.  The  expected  succession  of  Chester  was  encoun¬ 
tered,  several  sand  horizons  having  been  present.  According  to  the  record 
salt  water  was  struck  at  970  feet  and  probably  came  from  the  Ste.  Genevieve. 
Salt  water  was  also  encountered  at  1,240  feet,  the  bottom  of  the  hole.  At 
the  present  time  an  excellent  flow  of  fresh  water  comes  from  the  drive 
pipe.  The  hole  was,  unfortunately,  located  in  a  pronounced  syncline.  The 
test  is,  therefore,  of  no  value  whatever  and  should  not  discourage  well- 
directed  efforts  where  favorable  structure  exists. 

A  drill  hole  north  of  Carbondale  is  of  value  only  in  showing  the  thick¬ 
nesses  of  the  formations  penetrated.  The  Carbondale  formation  was  257 
feet  thick,  the  Pottsville  676  feet,  the  Clore  79  feet,  and  the  Palestine  about 
70  feet.  The  hole,  which  was  1,379  feet  in  depth  ended  in  the  Menard 
formation,  having  passed  through  about  146  feet  of  it. 


' 


OIL  POSSIBILITIES  OF  AVA  AREA 

By  Stuart  St.  Clair 


OUTLINE 

PAGE 

Introduction  .  57 

.  Area  treated  in  report .  57 

Character  and  object  of  investigations .  57 

Topography  .  58 

Stratigraphy  .  58 

General  relationships .  58 

Carbondale  formation .  58 

Pottsville  formation .  58 

Chester  group .  59 

Ste.  Genevieve  and  St.  Louis  formations .  59 

Oil  and  gas .  59 

Accumulation  of  oil  and  gas .  59 

Structure  .  60 

General  relationships .  60 

Sugar  Hill  dome .  60 

Campbell  Hill  anticline .  61 

Record  of  drilling .  63 

Recommendations  for  drilling .  64 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

PLATE 

VII.  Map  of  Ava  area  showing  geologic  structure .  60 

FIGURE 

12.  Cross-section  of  Campbell  Hill  anticline .  62 

INTRODUCTION 
Area  Treated  in  Report 

The  area  covered  by  this  report  lies  in  the  extreme  northwestern 
corner  of  Jackson  County.  The  principal  town  is  Ava  which  is  on  the 
Mobile  and  Ohio  Railroad.  Campbell  Hill,  four  miles  to  the  northwest 
of  Ava,  is  also  located  on  the  same  railroad. 

Character  and  Object  of  Investigations 

The  area  was  very  superficially  examined  by  the  writer  during  the 
early  part  of  August,  1916.  Several  days  were  spent  in  the  vicinity  of  Ava, 
but  only  two  days  were  actually  put  upon  the  structure  described  in  this 
report.  The  work  was  prompted  by  numerous  requests  from  residents 
of  the  district  and  also  by  the  discovery  of  some  oil  and  gas. 

(57) 


58 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


The  Sugar  Hill  dome  shown  on  Plate  VII  was  mapped  by  E.  W. 
Shaw  of  the  United  States  Geological  Survey  in  cooperation  with  the 
State  Geological  Survey.  The  result  of  that  work  appeared  in  the  folio 
report  on  the  Murphysboro  quadrangle.  The  object  of  the  writer's  work 
was  to  determine  whether  or  not  the  structure  continued  westward,  and 
approximately  how  far. 

One  producing  gas  well  is  in  the  south  center  of  sec.  11,  T.  7  S.,  R.  4 
W.,  on  the  Froemling  farm.  The  well  has  been  capped,  and  the  gas  is 
used  for  domestic  purposes  by  the  owner  of  the  property.  Records  of 
other  wells  are  given  under  a  subsequent  heading. 

TOPOGRAPHY 

The  topography  of  the  area  is  somewhat  varied.  Where  the  heavy 
sandstones  of  the  Pottsville  outcrop,  the  surface  is  hilly  and  rough.  In 
the  western  part,  the  Chester  limestones  have  had  a  modifying  influence, 
the  erosion  of  the  surface  having  produced  more  rounded  hills  and  gentle 
slopes.  The  northern  part  is  underlain  by  the  soft  shales  of  the  Carbon- 
dale  formation,  and  the  surface  is  gently  rolling.  Glacial  drift  and  loess 
have  modified  the  characteristic  surface  features  in  many  places. 

STRATIGRAPHY 
General  Relationships 

The  rocks  which  outcrop  in  the  area  belong  to  three  formations  only, 
the  Carbondale  and  Pottsville  of  the  Pennsylvanian  series,  and  the  upper 
Chester  limestone,  probably  the  Clore  formation,  of  the  Mississippian  series. 
Other  formations  of  the  Chester  underlie  the  area  and  are  encountered  in 
drilling.  All  the  possible  oil  sands  probably  lie  within  the  Chester  group. 

Carbondale  Formation 

The  Carbondale  formation  is  composed  chiefly  of  shale,  with  some 
sandstone  and  limestone.  The  base  is  the  bottom  of  coal  No.  2  or  Murphys¬ 
boro  coal.  Locally  the  Vergennes  sandstone  member  is  prominently  devel¬ 
oped  and  is  in  the  lower  part  of  the  formation.  In  the  upper  part  are  the 
horizons  of  coals  No.  5  and  No.  6,  the  top  of  the  latter  marking  the  top 
of  the  formation.  The  limestone  beds  occur  principally  in  the  upper  part, 
there  being  a  good  exposure  a  little  north  of  Campbell  Hill  village.  The 
Carbondale  is  found  only  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  area,  in  the  vicinity  of 
Sato  and  in  the  hills  to  the  west ;  in  the  hills  in  the  neighborhood  of  Ava ; 
and  north  of  the  fault  which  apparently  parallels  the  anticline  for  at  least 
part  of  its  length. 

Pottsville  Formation 

The  Pottsville  formation  is  composed  chiefly  of  sandstone  and  sandy 
shale.  The  top  is  defined  by  the  base  of  coal  No.  2  and  the  base  by  the 


AVA  AREA 


59 


Chester  limestone.  The  Pottsville  lies  uncon formably  upon  the  Chester, 
and  its  thickness,  therefore,  is  variable.  Drill  holes  and  additional  com¬ 
putations  show  an  average  of  about  400  feet  in  the  Campbell  Hill  area. 
However,  the  log  of  one  drill  hole  which  started  practically  at  the  top  of 
the  Pottsville  showed  a  thickness  of  460  feet  of  sand  and  shale  to  the  first 
limestone.  The  Pottsville  formation  outcrops  over  the  greater  part  of  the 
area  described  and  is  the  surface  rock  on  the  anticline. 

Chester  Group 

The  Chester  is  made  up  of  a  group  of  formations  which  comprise 
limestones,  shales,  sandstones,  and  sandy,  cherty,  and  shaly  limestones. 
Some  of  the  limestones  are  oolitic  and  may  contain  oil  and  gas.  The  Chester 
sandstones  are,  however,  the  beds  in  which  oil  and  gas  are  more  likely  to  be 
found. 

On  account  of  the  unconformity  at  the  top  of  the  Chester,  and  also 

minor  irregularities,  as  well  as  variable  formational  thicknesses,  the  total 

thickness  of  the  Chester  group  may  vary  considerably  in  short  distances. 

From  measurements  made  in  Randolph  County  by  Professor  Weller,  the 

maximum  thickness  is  about  635  feet.  If  drill  records  in  the  vicinitv  of  Ava 

* 

have  been  correctly  recorded,  the  Chester  attains  a  thickness  of  at  least 
1,000  feet  for  this  district.  The  Chester  limestone  outcrops  only  in  the 
western  part  of  the  area  shown  on  Plate  VII. 

Ste.  Genevieve  and  St.  Louis  Formations 

Underlying  the  Chester  are  the  Ste.  Genevieve  and  St.  Louis  lime¬ 
stones.  The  former,  if  it  contains  its  characteristic  oolitic  beds,  may  be 
an  important  oil  formation.  The  St.  Louis,  which  is  a  hard,  cherty  lime¬ 
stone,  should  mark  the  lower  limit  of  prospecting  in  this  area. 

OIL  AND  GAS 

Accumulation  of  Oil  and  Gas 

In  regions  where  certain  rock  formations  are  petroliferous,  the  con¬ 
tained  oil  and  gas  move  through  various  agencies  along  porous  strata  and 
become  trapped  and  form  pools  where  structural  conditions  are  favorable. 
The  anticline  and  dome  are  recognized  structures  where,  other  conditions 
being  favorable,  oil  and  gas  accumulate.  Sealed  faults  have  also  acted  as 
barriers  to  the  movement  of  oil  and  gas,  and  have  caused  ponding  on  the 
down-dip  side. 

The  effect  of  the  fault  on  the  north  side  of  the  structure  can  not  be 
foretold.  If  the  movement  and  shearing  effect  have  sealed  the  fault  plane, 
any  oil  or  gas  moving  up  the  dip  of  the  strata  from  the  north  and  north¬ 
east  would  become  impounded  and  would,  therefore,  not  reach  the  anticline 


60 


OIL  INVESTIGATION'S 


from  that  side.  All  oil  and  gas  that  collected  in  the  anticline  would  have 
to  come  from  the  east  and  southeast  sides. 

If  the  fault  plane  has  not  been  sealed  by  the  movement  of  the  rocks, 
then  all  the  oil  and  gas  coming  from  the  area  to  the  north  and  northeast  has 
either  seeped  out  through  the  fault  plane  and  been  lost,  or  part  or  all  the  oil 
and  gas  have  moved  upward  along  the  fault  plane  until  other  porous  strata 
have  been  encountered  and  then  traveled  onward  up  the  dipping  beds  and 
subsequently  collected  in  the  anticlines,  providing  the  reservoir  has  an 
impervious  cover  and  the  water  stands  sufficiently  high  in  the  oil-bearing 
strata.  (See  figure  5  of  the  second  paper  in  this  bulletin.)  Both  oil  and 
gas  have  been  found  on  the  anticline  so  there  has  been  some  accumulation, 
but  from  which  direction  it  is  impossible  to  state. 

Structure 

GENERAL  RELATIONSHIPS 

The  Campbell  Hill  anticline  is  probably  a  southwestern  extension  of 
the  Duquoin  anticline,  a  structure  that  has  been  traced  from  the  Sandoval  oil 
field  south  through  Centralia  to  Duquoin.  The  geologic  map  of  the  Mur- 
physboro  quadrangle  shows  a  northeastward-plunging  anticline  which  con¬ 
tinues  southeast  and  west  to  the  Sugar  Hill  area.  The  same  structure  con¬ 
tinues  westward  and  joins  what  is  described  as  the  Campbell  Hill  anticline 
in  this  report. 

The  fault  shown  on  Plate  A  ll  is  taken  from  the  Murphysboro  geologic 
map.  The  vertical  displacement  was  reported  to  be  between  100  and  200 
feet.  The  fault  evidently  bends  with  the  anticline  in  its  westward  extension 
and  probably  passes  close  to  the  village  of  Campbell  Hill,  for  a  coal  bed 
with  accompanying  limestone,  which  was  thought  to  be  coal  Xo.  5  in  the 
upper  part  of  the  Carbondale  formation,  outcrops  just  north  of  the  village. 
The  fault  appears  to  conform  with  the  basic  structure  of  the  region  and, 
therefore,  probably  dies  out  to  the  southwest. 

SUGAR  HILL  DOME 

Sugar  Hill  dome  has  already  been  shown  on  the  geologic  map  of  the 
Murphysboro  quadrangle.  It  lies  in  parts  of  secs.  4,  5.  8,  and  9,  T.  7  S., 
R.  3  W.  To  the  east  the  anticlinal  structure  pitches  steeply;  to  the  west 
there  is  a  low  saddle  which  connects  the  dome  with  the  Campbell  Hill 
anticline. 

The  writer  made  no  further  study  of  the  Sugar  Hill  dome.  Structure 
contours  drawn  by  E.  \Y.  Shaw  show  the  rock  strata  on  the  top  of  the 
dome  to  be  stratigraphically  from  25  to  75  feet  below  the  top  of  the  Potts- 
ville  formation.  In  a  well  drilled  to  a  depth  of  1,315  feet  near  the  top 
of  the  dome  in  section  9,  one  salt  sand  65  feet  thick  was  reported  at  a  depth 
of  665.  The  log  of  this  well  can  not  be  correlated  with  the  logs  of  the 


illin 


LETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  VII 

EGEND 


- - 

County  line 

Township  line 

Railroad 

• 

Town  location 

545 

Elevation  at  town 

♦ 

* 

Abandoned  oil  well 

Gas  well 

Show  of  gas 

Dry  hole 

The  arrows  and  accompanying  fig¬ 
ures  show  the  direction  and 
amount  of  dip. 

T.8 


ILLINOIS  STATE  OKOLOOlOAL  SURYT.S 


BULLETIN  NO.  .15,  PLATE  VTT 


r  4  w.  R-3  W. 


PERRY  COUNTY 


LEGEND 


County  line 
I'ownshiii  lino 


m 

043 


Unilroml 

Town  lorntion 

Klevntion  at  town 


♦ 

* 


* 


Aliundonnl  oil  well 


flua  well 

Show  of  k»h 

Dry  hole 


The  arrow n  mid  accompanying  fig 
urea  hIiow  the  direction  am 
amount  of  dip. 


Map  showing  geologic  structure  in  the  Ava  area 


AVA  AREA 


61 


wells  three  miles  to  the  west  which  record  oil  and  gas  at  several  horizons. 
Several  conditions  may  exist,  any  one  of  which  might  explain  the  failure 
of  the  well  located  on  the  dome  and  the  apparent  discordance  in  the  well 
records.  The  Sugar  Hill  well  may  be  too  high  on  the  dome  to  have 
tapued  the  oil  pool  which  would  rest  upon  the  surface  of  the  salt  water  in 
the  various  oil  formations.  One  salt  water  sand  should  not  condemn  fur¬ 
ther  well-directed  attempts  to  prospect  other  possible  oil  sands.  Again,  the 
possible  oil  sands  may  be  lenticular,  and  those  encountered  in  one  well  may 
not  appear  in  other  wells  within  a  reasonable  radius ;  or  there  may  be  some 
structural  condition  unknown  at  the  present  time  which  affects  the  dome  and 
not  the  anticline  to  the  west. 

The  writer  is  unable  to  make  further  comment  upon  the  Sugar  Hill 
dome,  for,  combined  with  a  lack  of  detailed  field  facts,  the  paucity  of  drill 
records  for  the  district  forbids  theoretical  deductions  regarding  the  char¬ 
acter  of  the  Chester  sands  and  the  possible  height  of  any  oil  in  the  structure. 

CAMPBELL  HILL  ANTICLINE 

The  Campbell  Hill  anticline  extends  from  Fork  Creek,  SE.  cor.  sec. 
6,  T.  7  S.,  R.  3  W.,  westward  to  the  southwest  corner  of  the  section,  thence 
southwestward  to  sec.  30,  T.  7  S.,  R.  4  W.,  where  the  structure  begins  to 
flatten  perceptibly.  The  total  length  is  between  seven  and  eight  miles.  The 
general  structure  of  the  anticline  is  a  gentle  pitch  to  the  northeast,  conform¬ 
ing  thereby  with  the  regional  dip  of  the  strata,  and  gently  dipping  limbs,  the 
northern  limb  having  the  steeper  dip.  Low,  elongate  doming  on  the  anticline 
is  strongly  suggested  by  the  topography  and  a  little  less  so  by  the  dip  of  the 
strata.  However,  the  surficial  covering  of  drift  and  loess  prevented  obser¬ 
vations  on  rock  strata  on  top  of  the  anticline.  The  saddle  between  the 
Campbell  Hill  anticline  and  the  Sugar  Hill  dome  is  clearly  shown  on  the 
Murphysboro  geologic  map.  The  saddle  near  the  southwestern  end  of  the 
anticline  which  would  mark  the  western  extension  of  the  elongate  dome 
area  is  probably  in  the  vicinity  of  the  NW.  cor.  sec.  29,  T.  7  S.,  R.  4  \Y. 
From  the  east  side  of  sec.  30,  T.  7  S.,  R  4  W.,  the  anticline  gradually  flattens 
to  the  southwest.  The  reconnaissance  was  not  carried  beyond  the  south¬ 
west  corner  of  section  30. 

The  oldest  rocks  exposed  on  the  anticline  as  far  as  mapped  are  Potts- 
ville  in  age.  In  sec.  11,  T.  7  S.,  R.  4  W.,  the  surface  is  between  30  and 
50  feet  from  the  top  of  the  formation;  in  section  20,  between  100  and  150 
feet;  and  in  section  30.  where  the  dips  are  flattening,  probably  close  to  200 
feet  from  the  top.  This  relation  shows  in  general  a  slight  pitch  to  the  axis 
of  the  anticline. 

Both  oil  and  gas  have  been  struck  on  the  Campbell  Hill  anticline,  and 
one  gas  well  is  producing  at  the  present  time.  Drill  records  show  oil  in 
two  holes.  Probably  the  greatest  width  of  the  anticline  is  about  two  miles. 


62 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


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AVA  AREA 


63 


The  south  side  has  the  gentler  clip,  the  average  being  about  2  degrees.  The 
average  dip  of  the  north  limb  is  probably  close  to  3  degrees.  A  cross- 
section  of  the  anticline  is  shown  in  figure  12. 

Record  of  Drilling 

A  number  of  wells  have  been  drilled  in  the  area,  the  locations  of  some 
having  been  well  chosen  for  an  oil  test.  The  three  Froemling  wells,  located 
in  the  SE.  Ft  sec.  11,  T.  7  S.,  R.  4  W.,  are  close  to  the  top  of  the  Campbell 
Hill  anticline.  The  results  of  these  tests  were  encouraging  according  to 
reports  given  the  writer.  In  the  first  well,  at  a  depth  of  a  little  less  than  600 
feet,  both  oil  and  gas  were  struck.  Drilling  was  continued  and  another  oil 
show  was  encountered  at  a  little  more  than  800  feet.  The  hole  was  plugged 
after  being  drilled  to  a  depth  of  1,173  feet.  The  other  two  Froemling  wells 
went  only  to  the  sand  which  is  about  600  feet  deep.  Gas  was  struck  in  both. 
One  of  the  holes  was  plugged,  but  the  other  was  capped  and  the  gas  piped 
to  the  house  of  the  owner  of  the  farm.  A  well  completed  January,  1917, 
in  the  east-central  part  of  section  11  and  300  feet  from  the  Froemling  wells, 
found  only  a  light  showing  of  oil  and  gas  in  the  top  of  the  sand  at  551  feet, 
below  which  salt  water  filled  the  sand  to  601  feet  where  drilling  was  stopped. 

Another  well  on  the  same  structure  was  drilled  in  the  SW.  *4  sec.  12, 
T.  7  S.,  R.  4  W.  This  location  is  about  one-fourth  mile  from  the  axis  of  the 
anticline  on  the  south  limb.  The  log  of  the  well  shows  that  the  Chester 
limestone  was  struck  about  100  feet  lower  than  the  elevation  of  this  bed  in 
the  Froemling  wells.  A  dry  sand,  which  is  said  to  have  had  an  oil  smell, 
was  penetrated  between  600  to  620  feet,  or  from  140  to  160  feet  below  the 
top  of  the  Chester  limestone.  The  hole  was  abandoned  at  a  depth  of  660 
feet.  If  the  log  is  correct  the  gas-sand  horizon  of  the  Froemling  wells  was 
not  reached.  This  well  should  not  be  considered  a  negative  test. 

The  Vogt  well,  in  the  NW.  Ft  sec.  22,  T.  7  S.,  R.  4  W.,  is  on  the  south 
limb  of  the  anticline  and  about  half  a  mile  from  the  axis.  The  depth  is 
926  feet,  and  it  is  reported  that  considerable  oil  was  bailed  from  the  well. 
The  oil  sand  in  this  well  is  probably  the  same  as  the  Froemling  600-foot 
sand. 

A  well  was  drilled  to  a  depth  of  1,315  feet  in  the  NW.  Ft  sec.  9,  T.  7  S., 
R.  3  W.,  and  near  the  top  of  the  Sugar  Hill  dome.  The  log  of  this  well 
differs  materially  from  the  log  of  the  deep  Froemling  well.  No  oil  or  gas 
was  reported,  although  a  number  of  sands  were  encountered.  Only  one 
salt  sand  is  recorded,  and  it  was  65  feet  thick,  from  665  to  730  feet  in  depth. 

Unsuccessful  tests  were  made  in  the  NW.  Ft  sec.  18,  T.  7  S.,  R.  3  \\  .. 
and  in  the  NW.  Ft  sec.  24,  T.  7  S.,  R.  4  W.  Both  locations,  however,  were 
in  a  syncline. 


64 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


A  well  in  which  a  little  oil  and  gas  were  said  to  have  been  struck  was 
drilled  about  half  a  mile  south  of  Ava.  Reference  to  the  geologic  map  of 
the  Murphysboro  quadrangle  shows  a  small  terrace  structure  at  this  point 
which  develops  into  an  anticlinal  saddle  a  little  farther  to  the  northeast. 

South  of  the  area  described  in  this  report  a  1,250-foot  well  was  put 
down  in  the  SE.  34  sec.  19,  T.  8  S.,  R.  3  W.  Several  sands  were  struck, 
but  no  oil  or  gas  was  present. 

Recommendations  for  Drilling 

The  sands  underlying  the  Campbell  Hill  area  which  may  be  oil  bearing 
are  in  the  Chester  group  or  the  Ste.  Genevieve  formation.  The  sandstones 
and  sandy  limestone  are  irregular  in  thickness  and  character,  and  their  depths 
below  the  base  of  the  Pottsville  may  vary  from  place  to  place.  The  records 
of  the  three  Froemling  wells  show  that  there  is  an  oil  and  gas  sand  at  a 
depth  of  about  200  feet  below  the  base  of  the  Pottsville.  Probably  the 
same  sand  horizon  is  said  to  have  yielded  oil  in  the  Vogt  well.  Another  sand 
which  had  an  oil  showing  was  about  440  feet  below  the  base  of  the  Potts¬ 
ville  in  Froemling  No.  1  well.  Other  wells  in  the  vicinity  passed  through 
several  sand  horizons  which  under  favorable  structural  conditions  could 
be  an  oil  reservoir. 

On  account  of  the  probable  variability  in  thicknesses  of  the  Chester 
formations,  one  should  hesitate  to  state  the  maximum  depth  to  which  drill¬ 
ing  should  be  carried  in  order  to  prospect  the  area  thoroughly.  However, 
the  Ste.  Genevieve  oolitic  beds  would  probably  be  reached  at  a  depth  of  1,000 
or  1,100  feet  below  the  base  of  the  Pottsville.  The  Ste.  Genevieve  underlies 
the  interbedded  sandstones,  shales,  and  limestones  of  the  Chester. 

On  account  of  the  thinness  of  the  Pottsville  rocks  in  the  area  there  is 
very  little  chance  of  obtaining  oil  from  the  basal  beds  which  produce  in 
other  parts  of  the  State. 

In  an  untested  area  the  higher  parts  of  anticlines  and  domes  should 
be  tested  first.  Should  the  sands  passed  through  be  dry  or  gas  bearing  the 
next  hole  should  be  on  the  limb  of  the  structure  and  on  the  one  having  the 
more  gentle  dip. 

The  higher  part  of  the  Campbell  Hill  anticline  has  been  tested  by  the 
Froemling  wells,  and  gas-bearing  and  oil-showing  sands  have  been  encoun¬ 
tered.  Therefore,  further  prospecting  should  be  done  farther  down  the  dip 
and  preferably  on  the  southeast  limb  of  the  structure.  If  the  reports  con¬ 
cerning  the  showing  of  oil  in  the  Vogt  well  be  correct,  the  chances  of  strik¬ 
ing  oil  for  some  distance  down  the  dip  from  the  axis  are  favorable  as  far 
as  can  be  judged  from  the  present  meager  data  on  the  area. 


AVA  AREA 


65 


The  well  on  Sugar  Hill  dome  should  not  be  regarded  a  final  test.  Any 
other  holes  put  down  should  be  located  a  little  farther  down  the  dip  of  the 
structure. 

The  anticlinal  saddle  and  terrace  which  extends  southwest  from  Sugar 
Hill  to  a  point  half  a  mile  south  of  Ava,  is  shown  on  Plate  VII.  It  is 
taken  from  the  Murphysboro  geologic  map.  Drilling  should  not  be  done 
on  this  structure  until  oil  has  been  definitely  shown  to  exist  in  the  rocks  of 
the  Campbell  Hill  anticline  and  at  as  low  a  structural  elevation  as  the  Ava 
saddle. 


■ 


■ 


OIL  POSSIBILITIES  OF  CENTRALIA  AREA 

By  Stuart  St.  Clair 


OUTLINE 


PAGE 

Introduction  . . .  67 

Area  treated  in  report  .  67 

Character  of  the  work  .  67 

Stratigraphy  .  68 

Oil  and  gas  .  68 

Accumulation  of  oil  and  gas .  68 

Structure  and  recommendations .  69 

Use  of  structure  contours  .  69 

Faults  .  69 

Area  east  of  Centralia  .  70 

Area  east  of  Central  City  .  70 

Junction  City  dome  .  70 

Sandoval  dome  .  71 

Shattuc  terrace  .  72 

Hoffman  anticline  .  73 


ILLUSTRATION 

PLATE 

VIII  Map  showing  geologic  structure  in  the  Centralia  area .  70 


INTRODUCTION 

Area  Treated  in  Report 

The  area  treated  in  this  report  lies  in  the  southwest  corner  of  Marion 
County  and  southeast  corner  of  Clinton  County.  The  principal  city  is 
Centralia,  although  both  Carlyle  and  Sandoval  are  important  towns  since 
both  are  oil-producing  centers.  With  the  Sandoval  oil  field  in  the  northern 
part  of  the  area  and  the  Carlyle  field1  just  to  the  west,  and  more  or  less 
activity  northeast  and  east  of  Centralia,  the  latent  possibilities  of  the  district 
are  of  interest  to  the  oil  man. 

Character  of  the  Work 

Since  the  area  is  drift  covered,  outcrops  of  the  rock  formations  are 
few.  As  a  result,  the  field  work  for  this  report  consisted  largely  in  securing 
logs,  locations,  and  approximate  surface  elevations  of  the  drill  holes. 

1Shaw,  E.  W.,  The  Carlyle  oil  field  and  the  surrounding  territory:  Ill.  State  Geol. 
Survey  Bull.  20,  p.  43,  1916. 


( 67) 


68 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


The  accuracy  of  the  resulting  work  is  dependent  largely  upon  two 
factors,  the  accuracy  of  the  well  logs  and  the  number  and  location  of  drill 
holes.  In  general  the  correctness  of  the  well  logs  must  be  accepted,  unless 
there  is  an  obvious  inaccuracy,  and  the  structure  is  drawn  to  a  large  extent 
upon  such  data.  The  paucity  of  drill  holes  in  the  Clinton  County  part  of 
this  area  allows  considerable  chance  for  errors  of  interpretation  of  the 
structural  conditions.  Without  doubt  further  drilling  will  supply  facts 
which  will  probably  necessitate  small  changes  in  the  positions  of  the  struc¬ 
ture  contours  shown  on  Plate  YIII. 

Topographic  maps  of  the  Centralia  and  Carlyle  quadrangles,  which  are 
published  by  the  United  States  Geological  Survey  and  the  Illinois  State 
Geological  Survey  in  cooperation,  were  used  in  the  field  work. 

STRATIGRAPHY 

The  surficial  deposit  of  the  area  covered  by  this  report  is  glacial  drift, 
the  thickness  of  which  varies  from  place  to  place,  the  maximum  thickness 
as  far  as  known  being  about  150  feet.  Along  the  streams,  which  have  cut 
deeply  into  the  drift,  ledges  of  the  youngest  rock  formation  are  exposed. 
All  such  outcrops  are  shale,  sandstone,  and  limestone  beds  which  belong 
to  the  McLeansboro  formation.  The  thickness  of  the  McLeansboro  which 
will  be  encountered  varies  with  the  location  and  the  topographic  elevation. 
Since  the  structure  contours  are  based  on  the  top  of  coal  No.  6,  which 
horizon  would  correspond  to  the  bottom  of  the  McLeansboro,  the  thickness 
may  be  easily  computed. 

Underlying  the  McLeansboro  is  the  Carbondale  formation  which  is 
quite  similar  to  the  former  in.  its  makeup.  The  top  of  the  Carbondale  is 
marked  by  the  top  of  coal  No.  6.  In  many  parts  of  the  State  the  base  of 
the  formation  is  marked  by  coal  No.  2,  but  in  the  Centralia  area  logs  of 
drill  holes  rarely  record  this  bed.  The  shallow  sands  of  the  Junction  City 
area  occur  in  the  upper  part  of  the  Carbondale. 

The  Pottsville  formation  which  is  composed  of  heavy  and  thin  sand¬ 
stone  beds  as  well  as  shales,  underlies  the  Carbondale.  In  this  area  the 
Pottsville  is  usually  reported  as  the  salt-sand  horizon. 

Underlying  the  Pottsville  are  the  interbedded  limestone,  sandstone,  and 
shale  formations  of  the  Chester  group.  The  productive  Stein  and  Benoist 
sands  of  the  Sandoval  field,  the  Carlyle  sand  of  the  Carlyle  field,  and  the 

deep  sands  in  the  producing  wells  east  of  Centralia  are  in  the  Chester. 

% 

OIL  AND  GAS 

Accumulation  of  Oil  and  Gas 

Under  favorable  conditions  of  sand  porosity  and  water  saturation  the 
tendency  of  oil  and  gas  to  accumulate  in  anticlines  and  domes,  and  on 
structural  terraces  has  been  shown  in  the  development  of  the  majority  of 


CENTRALIA  AREA 


69 


oil  and  gas  fields.  With  this  fact  in  mind,  the  finding  of  such  structures  is 
a  justifiable  signal  for  the  oil  man  to  start  to  prospect  that  particular  area. 
In  the  Centralia  area  where  oil  is  being  produced  in  three  districts,  geologic 
study  has  shown  that  the  oil  pools  are  related  to  definite  structural  features. 

The  possibility  of  oil  accumulation  on  the  down-dip  side  of  a  sealed 
fault  should  also  be  mentioned.  There  is  some  evidence  that  such  a  con¬ 
dition  exists  in  the  area  east  of  Centralia.  General  conditions  are  diagram- 
matically  presented  in  figure  5  of  the  second  paper  in  this  bulletin. 

Structure  and  Recommendations 

USE  OF  STRUCTURE  CONTOURS 

The  structure  of  the  area  on  Plate  VIII  is  expressed  by  structure  con¬ 
tours  showing  the  approximate  elevation  of  coal  No.  6  above  sea  level. 
The  practical  use  of  the  structure  contours  will  be  obvious  with  but  a  word 
of  explanation.  The  approximate  depth  of  coal  No.  6  is  the  difference 
between  the  surface  elevation,  which  can  be  determined  from  the  topo¬ 
graphic  map  of  the  area,  and  the  structure  contour  elevation  where  the 
latter  is  above  sea  level,  or  the  sum  of  the  elevation  of  the  surface  and 
the  structure  contour  elevation  when  the  latter  is  minus  or  below  sea  level. 
Where  the  interval  between  the  possible  oil  sands  and  coal  No.  6  is  known, 
the  depth  necessary  to  drill  can  easily  be  computed  by  simple  addition. 

faults 

The  faults  are,  to  some  degree,  theoretical,  their  positions  and  extents 
being  assumed  to  explain  discordances  in  drill  records.  In  the  Marion  Coal 
Company’s  mine,  NE.  J4  sec.  31,  T.  2  N.,  R.  1  E.,  the  northeast-southwest 
fault,  the  position  of  which  is  shown  approximately  on  Plate  A  III,  has  a 
displacement  of  about  30  feet  with  the  downthrow  to  the  northwest.  The 
fault  east  of  the  abandoned  shafts  of  the  Centralia  Coal  Company,  sec.  7, 
T.  1  N.,  R.  1  E.,  has  a  downthrow  on  the  west  side  of  about  110  feet.  This 
fault  probably  connects  with  the  smaller  fault  to  the  north.  The  south¬ 
ward  extension  of  the  fault  can  not  be  traced,  but  its  approximate  position 
may  be  determined  from  the  relations  shown  by  drill  records. 

It  was  necessary  to  assume  the  fault  from  sec.  6  to  sec.  36,  T.  1  N., 
R.  1  E.,  in  order  to  show  relations  which  the  drill  had  recorded;  its  position 
is  therefore  only  approximate.  The  downthrow  is  on  the  northeast  side. 
Where  similar  contours  connect,  the  fault  dies  out,  and  is  replaced  by  a 
plunging  anticline. 

The  Junction  City  dome  is  partly  surrounded  by  faults.  The  small 
northeast-southwest  fault  has  had  some  effect  upon  the  accumulated  oil 
in  the  dome,  for  oil  has  been  seeping  into  the  mine  of  the  Marion  Coal  Com¬ 
pany  for  a  number  of  years. 


70 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


AREA  EAST  OF  CENTRALIA 

One  producing  section  lies  east  of  Centralia.  The  Brown  well,  which 
is  in  the  north  center  of  sec.  16,  T.  1  N.,  R.  1  E.,  has  been  pumping  for 
a  number  of  years.  The  oil  sand  is  at  a  depth  of  about  1,650  feet,  although 
there  are  several  salt  water  sands  above.  Several  other  wells  in  the  vicinity 
are  said  to  have  struck  oil  at  the  top  of  the  sand,  but  the  underlying  salt 
water  could  not  he  controlled  and  flooded  the  wells. 

The  only  structural  feature  that  could  account  for  the  accumulation 
of  oil  in  this  section  is  the  fault  which  is  thought  to  lie  just  west  of  the 
Brown  well.  If  the  fault  plane  should  be  sealed  at  this  point,  there  would 
be  a  small  accumulation  on  the  east  side.  If  this  sealed  condition  is  present 
in  other  sections  along  the  fault,  other  small  producing  pools  may  be  struck. 
However,  prospecting  upon  such  assumptions  can  not  be  commended  from 
a  geologic  point  of  view. 

A  condition  probably  similar  to  the  Brown  occurrence  exists  near  the 
fault  in  the  NW.  cor.  sec.  20,  T.  1  N.,  R.  1  E.,  where  a  showing  of  oil  was 
claimed  in  the  well  of  the  Miller  Oil  Company. 

AREA  EAST  OF  CENTRAL  CITY 

The  producing  section  in  the  area  east  of  Central  City  is  in  the  west 
center  of  sec.  3,  T.  1  N.,  R.  1  E.  The  two  Kuester  wells  are  pumping  from 
a  deep  sand.  Other  wells  in  the  vicinity  are  said  to  have  had  a  showing 
of  oil  but  were  flooded  by  salt  water.  These  wells  are  located  on  a  plung¬ 
ing  anticline  where  there  is  probably  a  slight  terrace  structure.  Further 
drilling  to  the  northwest  for  a  distance  not  exceeding  a  half  to  three-quarters 
of  a  mile  may  extend  this  pool.  However,  only  very  small  producing  wells 
should  be  anticipated  and  the  basis  of  risk  should  be  calculated  upon  such 
returns.  Great  care  should  be  taken  not  to  drill  too  far  into  the  oil  sand, 
or  the  well  will  be  flooded  by  the  salt  water  which  lies  just  below  the  thin 
stratum  of  oil. 


JUNCTION  CITY  DOME 

The  Junction  City  dome  is  outlined  by  10-foot  contours  on  Plate  \  III. 
Only  a  small  area  on  the  south  flank  of  the  dome  has  proved  to  be  pro¬ 
ductive  up  to  the  present  time.  This  area  is  outlined  on  the  map,  and  in 
it  are  10  pumping  wells.  The  oil  production  is  from  shallow  sands.  The 
dip  of  the  beds  is  much  less  on  the  south  than  on  the  north  side.  The  small 
northeast-southwest  fault  is  probably  largely  responsible  for  this  relatively 
steep  dip  on  the  north  side. 

The  upper  or  Dykstra  sand  is  from  5  to  20  feet  below  coal  Xo.  6 
and  has  an  average  thickness  of  less  than  10  feet.  In  some  wells  the  Dyk¬ 
stra  sand  is  apparently  absent,  a  fact  which  shows  its  lenticular  character. 
A  show  of  oil  is  reported  in  most  wells  where  this  sand  is  present.  The 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  VIII 


LEGEND 

■■  —  .  County  line 


Township  line 


“ * — • — • — —  Railroad 
<§>  Town  location 

493  Elevation  at  town 


T.2N. 


Oil  well 


♦ 


4 


Abandoned  oil  well 


Dry  hole  * 


Well  now  being  drilled 


X 


Coal  mine 


ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 

R.2  W. 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  VIII 


T.2  N 


T.l  N. 


R.1  W. 


R.2  W. 


R.1  W. 


Scale  of  miles 
1  2 


LEGEND 


County  line 

Township  line 

Railroad 


T.2  N. 


<D  Town  location 

403  Elevation  at  town 

te-  T>= 

•  Oil  well 

♦  Abandoned  oil  well 

V  Dry  hole 

Well  now  being  drilled 


\ 


X 

X, 

V 


Coal  mine 


Abandoned  coal  mine 


Fault ;  arrow  shows  direction  of 
down-throw  side 


\ 


Structure  contours  drawn  through 
all  points  on  coal  No.  6  having 
elevations  indicated  by  figures. 
Arrows  show  dip  of  beds.  In  the 
Junction  City  dome,  the  dashed 
contours  are  drawn  at  10-foot  in¬ 
tervals. 


IEFFERSON  COUNTY 

R.  1  E. 


Map  showing  geologic  structure  in  the  Centralia  area 


CENTRALIA  AREA 


71 


Sherman  well,  in  the  southern  part  of  sec.  29,  T.  2  N.,  R.  1  E.,  went  only 
to  the  Dykstra  sand  and  resulted  in  the  usual  oil  show.  The  well  is  appar¬ 
ently  on  the  top  of  the  dome  and  should  have  gone  deeper  in  order  to 
properly  test  the  degree  of  saturation  of  the  oil-producing  sands  in  the  dome. 

The  main  oil  sand  of  the  dome  is  the  Wilson  sand  which  is  between 
100  and  110  feet  below  coal  No.  6.  The  thickness  of  the  sand  is  quite  vari¬ 
able.  In  Fyke  No.  1  well  an  intermediate  sand  which  is  about  15  feet 
above  the  Wilson  is  the  oil  producer.  It  is  not  improbable  that  these  two 
sands  may  be  the  same  with  a  shale  parting  in  places.  A  lower  sand  which 
contained  oil  was  struck  in  Tilton  No.  1  well  at  a  depth  of  about  160  feet 
below  coal  No.  6.  The  same  sand  was  reported  dry  in  Fyke  No.  1  well. 

As  shown  on  the  map  the  producing  wells  are  within  the  75-foot  struc¬ 
ture  contour  and  above  the  small  terrace  which  is  shown  on  the  south  flank 
of  the  dome.  The  field  may  be  extended  a  little  to  the  south  but  probably 
not  so  far  as  the  Overback  well,  in  the  SW.  34  section  32,  which  is  within 
the  70-foot  contour,  and  which  struck  salt  water  in  a  sand  about  150  feet 
below  coal  No.  6.  This  sand  may  correspond  to  the  Tilton.  None  of  the 
higher  sands  were  reported,  and  they  may  pinch  out  south  of  the  present 
producing  area.  Since  the  Sherman  well  did  not  go  below  the  Dykstra 
sand,  the  height  to  which  the  oil  may  extend  in  the  dome  is  not  known. 
Tests  should  be  made  to  determine  this  level.  What  efifect  the  small  fault 
has  had  upon  oil  accumulation  on  the  north  flank  of  the  dome  can  not  be 
stated,  for  no  tests  have  been  made  between  the  Sherman  well  at  the  top 
of  the  dome  and  the  McClelland  well,  SW.  Ft  sec.  20,  T.  2  N.,  R.  1  E., 
which  is  at  the  base  of  the  dome. 

From  a  study  of  the  drill  records  of  the  area,  the  shallow  sands  are 
irregular  in  thickness  and  probably  spotty  in  character.  In  view  of  such 
facts,  there  is  considerable  uncertainty  attached  to  prospecting.  Accurate 
records  should  be  kept  of  all  drilling. 

Drilling  should  be  extended  to  the  deep  sands  which  have  been  found 
productive  in  both  the  Sandoval  field  and  the  sections  east  of  Centralia 
and  Central  City.  The  lowest  of  these  sands  would  probably  be  not  more 
than  920  to  970  feet  below  coal  No.  6.  The  nearness  of  the  Junction  City 
dome  to  the  Sandoval  field  and  the  similarity  of  the  two  structures,  in  the 
fact  that  their  structural  elevations  are  nearly  the  same,  are  ample  incentives 
for  deeper  drilling. 


SANDOVAL  DOME 

The  Sandoval  oil  field  has  been  described  in  the  Illinois  State  Geolog- 
ical  Survey  Bulletin  16,  pages  130  to  146.  The  present  producing  area  is 
shown  on  Plate  VIII.  The  structure  contouring  of  the  field  was  done  more 
for  the  purpose  of  showing  the  relation  of  the  Sandoval  dome  to  the  struc¬ 
tures  to  the  southwest  than  to  give  additional  information  on  the  producing 


72 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


field,  for  its  limits  have  already  been  outlined  by  the  drill.  The  difference 
in  the  general  structure  of  the  field  is  due  to  more  accurate  elevations  avail¬ 
able  since  the  publication  of  the  topographic  map  covering  the  area.  As 
these  elevations  were  used  in  drawing  up  the  structure  to  the  southwest, 
it  was  necessary  to  make  a  rough  revision  of  the  Sandoval  structure. 

The  oil  comes  from  two  sands,  the  upper  or  Stein  sand  being  found 
between  800  and  860  feet  below  coal  No.  6;  the  lower  or  Benoist  sand, 
between  900  and  970  feet  below  coal  No.  6  or  100  to  140  feet  below  the 
top  of  the  Stein  sand.  An  intermediate  sand  has  been  reported  in  some 
drill  holes,  but  so  far  as  known  it  is  not  productive.  However,  it  may 
contain  salt  water  with  the  underlying  Benoist  sand  productive. 

The  Sandoval  field  has  been  producing  steadily  since  the  spring  of  1909 
with  a  decline  less  than  the  average  for  other  Illinois  fields.  Initial  pro¬ 
duction  of  wells  varies  from  50  to  200  barrels  per  day.  At  the  present 
time  there  are  nearly  125  wells  with  a  total  daily  production  of  about  1,000 
barrels. 

There  are  still  latent  possibilities  in  the  Sandoval  structure.  In  all 
probability  the  Chester  group  contains  other  sands  lower  than  the  Benoist. 
There  may  be  present,  also,  the  oolitic  beds  of  the  Ste.  Genevieve  which 
is  the  McClosky  sand  of  the  Lawrence-Crawford  County  field.  These 
horizons  should  be  tested  under  the  highest  part  of  the  Sandoval  dome 
in  order  to  establish  their  productive  or  non-productive  character. 

SHATTUC  TERRACE 

The  Shattuc  terrace,  which  is  named  from  the  village  on  the  north 
side  of  the  structure,  occupies  parts  of  secs.  9,  10,  14,  15,  16,  17,  20,  21, 
22,  23,  27,  28,  and  29,  T.  2  N.,  R.  1  W.  On  the  terrace  the  average  depth 
of  coal  No.  6,  upon  which  the  structure  is  drawn,  is  about  25  feet  below 
sea  level.  With  the  surface  elevation  known,  the  depth  of  the  coal  is  easily 
computed.  The  Stein  and  Benoist  sands,  which  are  productive  in  the 
Sandoval  field,  will  probably  be  found  at  a  depth  of  about  840  to  870  feet 
and  950  to  1,000  feet,  respectively,  below  coal  No.  6.  The  only  well  near 
the  terrace,  the  drill  record  of  which  is  available,  is  in  the  NE.  R*  sec.  13. 
T.  2  N.,  R.  1  W.  A  60-foot  sand,  about  850  feet  below  coal  No.  6  and 
at  the  position  where  the  Stein  sand  should  be,  had  an  oil  show  in  the 
upper  part  under  which  was  salt  water.  A  second  sand  49  feet  thick,  which 
would  probably  correspond  to  the  Benoist  sand,  was  struck  at  a  depth  of 
about  985  feet  below  coal  No.  6.  A  third  sand,  40  feet  thick,  was  reached 
at  a  depth  of  about  1,045  feet  below  coal  No.  6. 

More  than  one  well  would  be  required  to  test  the  terrace,  but  with 
present  information  the  NE.  sec.  22,  T.  2  N.,  R.  1  \\  .  would  be  as 
favorable  as  any  that  might  be  chosen  for  a  first  test. 


CENTRALIA  AREA 


73 


HOFFMAN  ANTICLINE 

The  Hoffman  anticline  is  apparently  a  southwest  extension  of  the  gen¬ 
eral  anticlinal  structure  which  includes  the  Sandoval  dome  and  the  Shattuc 
terrace.  The  Hoffman  anticline  is  well  defined  from  its  northern  end,  which 
is  in  secs.  28  and  29,  T.  2  N.,  R.  1  W.  Beyond  this  point,  toward  Nash¬ 
ville,  the  structure  is  less  distinct,  probably  joining  with  the  anticline  which 
extends  southwest  from  Centralia. 

The  same  sands,  the  thickness  and  positions  of  which  have  been  de¬ 
scribed  under  the  subject  “Shattuc  terrace”,  in  all  probability  underlie  the 
area  covered  by  the  Hoffman  anticline.  The  drill  hole  in  the  SW.  *4  sec. 
12,  T.  1  N.,  R.  2  W.,  which  is  apparently  very  close  to  the  axis  of  the 
anticline,  went  to  a  depth  of  about  825  feet  below  coal  No.  6  but  did  not 
reach  the  horizon  of  the  Stein  sand.  The  location  was  a  good  one  to  test 
the  structure  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that  drilling  was  discontinued  before 
either  of  the  possible  oil  horizons  was  reached.  Further  tests  on  the  anti¬ 
cline  should  be  made  on  the  higher  parts  first. 


. 


PARTS  OF  HARDIN,  POPE,  AND 
SALINE  COUNTIES 


By  Charles  Butts 


Of  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey  in  cooperation  with  the  State  Geological  Survey 


OUTLINE 

PAGE 


Geology  .  75 

Stratigraphy  .  75 

Structure  .  76 

Possible  oil-bearing  strata .  77 


ILLUSTRATION 

PLATE 

IX  Map  showing  geologic  structure  in  parts  of  Hardin,  Pope,  and  Saline 

counties  .  76 


GEOLOGY 

Stratigraphy 

The  rocks  of  the  area  under  discussion  are  of  Devonian  and  Mississip- 
pian  ages.  In  the  center  of  the  Hicks  dome  (PI.  IX),  occupying  the  high 
ground  about  a  square  mile  in  extent,  is  a  gray  limestone  yielding  abundant 
surface  chert.  This  chert  incloses  such  characteristic  Onondaga  (“Cornif- 
erous”)  limestone  fossils  as  Amphigenia  curta,  Nucleocrinus  (V erneuilli)  f 
Spirifer  divaricata,  Spirifer  varicosus,  an  Eatonia,  and  other  species  repre¬ 
sented  by  poorly  preserved  specimens.  This  limestone  has  been  regarded 
as  “Tullahoma”  [Fort  Payne]  by  Bain  and  others,  but  there  can  be  no 
doubt  of  its  Onondaga  age.  The  central  limestone  area  is  surrounded  by 
a  belt  of  valley  ground  one-third  mile  wide  occupied  by  the  outcrops  of  the 
black  Chattanooga  shale.  All  observations  indicate  that  this  shale  is  not 
less  than  300  feet  thick,  and  it  may  be  as  much  as  400  feet,  although  its 
thickness  has  hitherto  been  estimated  at  50  to  100  feet.  Overlying  the 
Chattanooga  is  about  1,500  feet  of  limestone,  made  up  in  ascending  order, 
of  the  Fort  Payne  (“Tullahoma")  formation,  600  feet;  limestone  of  prob¬ 
able  Warsaw  age,  250  feet ;  St.  Louis  limestone,  350  feet ;  and  the  Ste. 
Genevieve  limestone,  including  the  Ohara  limestone  member  at  top,  270 
feet.  Above  this  series  lie  alternating  limestone,  shale,  and  sandstone  strata 
of  the  Chester  group  aggregating  a  thickness  of  about  900  feet.  These 
Chester  beds  outcrop  in  a  belt  about  2  miles  wide,  west,  northwest,  and 
north  of  the  semicircular  sandstone  ridge  lying  just  east  of  Grand  Pierre 
Creek  and  southwest  and  south  of  Pinhook  Creek.  The  sandstone  of  this 


(75) 


76 


OIL  INVESTIGATIONS 


ridge  is  the  lowest  prominent  sandstone  of  the  Chester  group.  The  top 
sandstone  of  the  Chester  group  (Palestine  sandstone  of  Weller),  150  feet 
below  the  basal  Pennsylvanian  (“Coal  Measures” )  conglomerate,  forms  the 
surface  of  the  central  part  of  the  Horton  Hill  anticlinal  area.  The  high 
hills  west  of  Grand  Pierre  Creek  and  north  of  Rose  Creek  are  capped  by 
Pennsylvanian  (“Coal  Measures”)  conglomerate,  sandstone,  and  shale. 

Structure 

The  structural  features  in  northwestern  Hardin  County,  Ill.,  include 
from  southeast  to  northwest  the  Hicks  anticline,  the  Eagle  Valley  syncline, 
the  Horton  Hill  anticline,  the  Potato  Hill  syncline,  and  the  Bald  Hill  anti¬ 
cline. 

The  Hicks  anticline  is  a  strong  fold  long  known  as  the  Hicks  dome ; 
farther  northwest,  mainly  in  southeast  Saline  County  but  extending  south- 
westward  into  northern  Pope  County,  is  a  low  oval  anticline  here  named 
the  Horton  Hill  anticline;  and  a  mile  or  two  still  farther  west  is  a  strong 
unsymmetrical  anticline,  extending  from  Lusk  Creek  in  sec.  24,  T.  11  S., 
R.  6  E.,  northeastward  through  Bald  Hill,  and  hence  called  the  Bald  Hill 
anticline. 

The  form  and  extent  of  the  Hicks  dome  and  of  the  Horton  Hill  anti- 
cline  are  shown  on  the  accompanying  map  (PI.  IX)  by  structure  contours, 
those  on  the  Hicks  dome  being  drawn  on  the  top  of  the  black  Chattanooga 
shale  at  vertical  intervals  of  100  feet,  and  those  on  the  Horton  Hill  anti¬ 
cline  drawn  on  the  top  of  the  uppermost  sandstone  of  the  Chester  group 
(Palestine  sandstone  of  Weller)  at  vertical  intervals  of  50  feet.  Only 
the  approximate  position  of  the  axis  of  the  Bald  Hill  anticline  is  indicated, 
owing  to  its  narrowness,  steep  northwest  limb,  and  less  well-known  details. 

Between  the  Hicks  dome  and  the  Horton  Hill  anticline  is  the  Herod 
fault  and  a  syncline  provisionally  named  the  Eagle  Valley  syncline.  The 
Herod  fault  trends  northeast,  and  the  strata  are  downthrown  on  the  south¬ 
east  side  about  100  to  200  feet.  Between  the  Horton  Hill  and  Bald  Hill 
anticlines  is  the  Potato  Hill  syncline,  the  axis  of  which  lies  near  and  just 
west  of  Potato  Hill  in  the  SW.  Vl  sec.  18,  T.  11  S.,  R.  7  E. 

Two  faults  cut  into  the  northeast  flank  of  the  Hicks  Dome  and  the 
most  southeasterly  one  may  pass  across  the  dome.  About  2  miles  farther 
southeast,  and  outside  of  the  area  mapped,  another  fault  cuts  across  the 
Hicks  anticline  in  a  general  northeast-southwest  direction  like  the  mapped 
faults. 

From  the  center  of  the  Hicks  dome  the  rocks  dip  outward  strongly 
to  the  southwest  and  northeast  and  intermediate  directions  with  dips  be¬ 
tween  10  and  20  degrees;  the  dip  is  more  gentle  to  the  southeast.  In  broad 
areas  to  the  southwest  and  to  the  north  of  the  center  of  the  dome,  the 
dip  is  low  or  the  strata  are  nearly  flat.  This  battening  of  the  structure, 


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ILLINOIS  STATE  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 

SURVEYED  IN  COOPERATION  WITH 
U  S.  GEOLOGICAL  SURVEY 


BULLETIN  NO.  35,  PLATE  IX 


R.7E. 


LEGEND 


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‘  - - Houses  and  first-class  roads 


X  Bench  mark 

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Contours  drawn  through  all 

Koints  on  a  given  horizon 
aving  elevations  indicat¬ 
ed.  The  arrows  on  the 
axis  of  dome,  syncline,  or 
anticline,  shows  the  down¬ 
ward  dip  of  the  beds. 


Contours  drawn  on  upper 
sandstone  (Palestine)  of 
Chester  group;  interval  50 
feet. 


Contours  drawn  on  top  of 
black  Chattanooga  shale; 
interval  100  feet 


y2 


6  1V1ILES 


Map  showing  structures  favorable  to  the  accumulation  of  oil  and  gas  in  parts  of  Hardin,  Pope,  and  Saline  counties  (structural  data  by  Charles  Butts) 


HARDIN,  POPE,  AND  SALINE  COUNTIES 


/  / 


producing  a  structural  terrace,  is  indicated  by  the  spreading  of  the  con¬ 
tour  lines  in  secs.  13,  34,  and  35,  T.  11  S. ;  secs.  2  and  3,  T.  12  S.,  R.  7  E. 
and  secs.  17  and  18,  T.  11  S.,  R.  8  E.  Outward  from  these  terraces  the 
dip  steepens  to  about  10  degrees  which  prevails  to  the  outer  margin  of  the 
contoured  area  southeast  of  the  Herod  fault.  Beyond  the  contoured  area 
the  rocks  dip  at  angles  less  than  5  degrees  as  far  as  the  axis  of  the  Eagle 
Valley  syncline,  but  the  continuity  of  the  strata  is  interrupted  by  the  Herod 
fault. 

West  of  the  Eagle  Valley  axis  the  strata  rise  westward  at  a  small  de¬ 
gree  to  the  axis  of  the  Horton  Hill  anticline.  This  seems  to  be  an  elong¬ 
ated  dome,  the  axis  of  which  pitches  moderately  to  the  northeast  and  to 
the  southwest  from  the  center  of  the  dome.  Northwest  of  this  axis  the 
rocks  dip  northwestward  at  a  low  angle  to  the  axis  of  the  Potato  Hill  syn¬ 
cline.  From  the  last  named  axis  the  strata  rise  westward  to  the  axis  of 
the  Bald  Hill  anticline  at  a  rate  gradually  increasing  to  as  much  as  25  de¬ 
grees,  locally,  near  the  axis.  Immediately  west  of  the  axis  the  dip  varies 
from  15  to  60  degrees  westward,  the  steeper  dips  being  observed  in  secs. 
12  and  13,  T.  11  S.,  R.  6  E.  and  in  sec.  31,  T.  10  S.,  R.  7  E.  A  short 
distance  west  of  the  axis  the  rocks  are  nearly  horizontal. 

POSSIBLE  OIL-BEARING  STRATA 

In  the  central  part  of  the  Hicks  dome  the  possible  sources  of  oil  lie 
below  the  limestone  of  Onondaga  age.  Of  these  lower  strata  nothing  di¬ 
rectly  is  known  in  the  region,  since  they  are  nowhere  exposed  at  the  sur¬ 
face  and  have  not  been  penetrated  by  deep  wells.  Rocks  that  normally 
occupy  this  stratigraphic  position  outcrop  in  Union  and  Alexander  coun¬ 
ties,  Ill.,  50  miles  west  of  Hardin  County;  and  along  Tennessee  River  70 
miles  and  farther  south  of  the  region.  From  the  Devonian  and  Silurian 
rocks  of  these  regions  must  be  inferred  the  possible  character  of  the  cor¬ 
responding  part  of  the  general  geologic  column  in  Hardin  County.  Accord¬ 
ing  to  Savage,1  in  Union  and  Alexander  counties  these  rocks  include  lime¬ 
stone  of  Onondaga  age  150  feet  thick,  sandstones  and  cherty  limestone  of 
Oriskany  age  235  feet  thick  immediately  underlying  the  Onondaga  lime¬ 
stone  of  Illinois  reports,  limestone  of  Helderbergian  age  160  feet  thick ; 
limestones  of  Silurian  age  120  feet;  and  sandstone  of  Richmond  age,  the 
Thebes  sandstone  of  Illinois  reports,  90  feet  thick,  lying  about  530  feet 
below  the  limestone  of  Onondaga  age.  If  the  section  of  these  lower  strata 
in  Hardin  County  is  at  all  like  what  it  is  in  Union  County,  it  is  possible 
that  some  of  these  sandstone  beds  underlie  the  Hicks  dome  at  a  depth  of 
not  over  1,000  feet  below  the  top  of  the  Chattanooga  shale.  These  strata 

1Savage,  T.  E.,  Lower  Paleozoic  stratigraphy  of  southwestern  Illinois:  Ill.  State  Geol. 
Survey,  Bull.  8,  pp.  103-116,  1907. 


7S 


OIL  IX  V  EST I  GAT  I O  XS 


are  nowhere  known  to  be  oil-bearing,  but  that  is  not  necessarily  a  condem¬ 
nation,  for  in  the  Colmar  field  in  McDonough  County,  Ill.,  the  oil  is  in  a 
local  sand  of  Niagaran  age,  and  in  Allen  County,  Ky.,  the  oil  is  reputed  to 
be  in  rock  of  Niagaran  age.  These  are  recent  discoveries  and  apparently 
the  only  occurrences  of  the  kind.  There  is  always  a  chance  of  oil  occurring 
at  horizons  at  which  it  has  not  been  found  elsewhere. 

Farther  out  from  the  center  of  the  Hicks  dome,  as  on  the  structural 
terraces  previously  mentioned,  there  is,  in  addition  to  the  chance  of  oil  in 
the  strata  below  the  limestone  of  Onondaga  (“Corniferous” )  age,  the  chance 
of  its  presence  in  that  limestone  itself,  which  is  the  oil-bearing  stratum  of 
the  Irvine  field  in  eastern  Kentucky,  of  the  field  in  Ohio  County,  Ky.,  and 
of  the  oil  fields  of  Ontario,  Canada.  The  lower  part  of  the  limestone  of 
Onondaga  age  in  Union  County,  Ill.,  is  said  to  have  a  strong  odor  of  petro¬ 
leum.  The  top  of  this  limestone  should  be  reached  at  about  1,600  feet  below 
the  general  level  of  the  country  in  the  area  of  the  structural  terraces  in 
secs.  13,  34  and  35,  T.  11  S.,  R.  7  E. ;  secs.  2  and  3,  T.  12  S.,  R.  7  E. ;  and 
sec.  17,  T.  11  S.,  R.  8  E. ;  and  the  possibly  oil-bearing  strata  below  the 
limestone  are  probably  within  a  depth  of  2,200  feet  below  the  general  level 
of  the  ground  in  these  sections. 

In  the  region  of  the  Horton  Hill  anticline  there  is  also  a  chance  that 
the  basal  sandstone  strata  of  the  Chester  group  may  contain  oil.  The  top 
of  these  sandstones  is  at  a  depth  of  500  to  600  feet  along  the  Horton  Hill 
axis,  whereas  the  limestone  of  Onondaga  age  is  probably  about  2,300  feet 
deep  and  the  horizon  of  the  Thebes  sandstone  of  the  Illinois  Survey,  the 
lowest  possible  sandstone,  is  probably  not  over  3,000  feet  below  the  top 
of  the  upper  Chester  sandstone  in-  the  center  of  the  anticlinal  area. 


INDEX 


PAGE 

Adams  County,  drilling  in . 16,18 

Alexander  County,  drilling  in . 17,18 

Allendale  field,  development  of....  14 

Ava  area,  investigations  in . 57-65 

B 

Bald  Hill  anticline . 76,77 

Bond  County,  drilling  in. . 17,  18 

Brick  plant,  cost  of .  10 


Campbell  Hill  anticline . 60,61-63 

Carbondale  formation  in  southern 
Illinois . 28-29,  44,  55,58 

Carlyle  field,  development  of .  15 

Cedar  Creek  dome . 49-50 

Central  City,  oil  possibilities  near..  70 
Centralia  area,  investigations  in 

. 15,  67-74 

Chattanooga  shale  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  . 75,77 

Chester  group  in  southern  Illinois 

. 23,  36,  45-47, 

49,  53,  54,  59,  68,  72,  75-76, 78 

Clark  County,  drilling  in . 12,  18 

Clinton  County,  drilling  in . 15,18 

Clore  formation  in  southern  Illinois 
. 36,  46,  53,  55 

Coal  City,  oil  at . 16-17 

Coal  No.  2  in  southern  Illinois.... 

. . 24,  26,  28-29,68 

Cobden  terrace . 50-51 

Coles  County,  oil  fields  in .  12 

Colmar- Plymouth  field,  develop¬ 
ment  of . 15-16 

Crawford  County,  drilling . 13,18 

Cumberland  County,  drilling  in....  12 

Cypress  formation  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  .  46 


D 


PAGE 


Drainage  in  southern  Illinois . 22,42 

Devonian  formation  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  . 75,77 

Drilling,  record  of .  18 

E 

Eagle  Valley  syncline .  76 

Edgar  County,  drilling  in .  12 

Eldorado,  drilling  near .  17 


Faults,  relation  of,  to  oil  accumu¬ 
lation  . 30-31,51-52,69 

Fayette  County,  drilling  in . 17,  18 


Gas  in  southern  Illinois . 

....29-37,  47-55,  59-64,  68-73,  77-78 

Glacial  drift  in  southern  Illinois.  .29,  44 

Golconda  formation  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  . 46,  54 

Gold  Hill  fault . 31-32 

Grundy  County,  drilling  in . 16-17 

H 

Hancock  County,  drilling  in . 15,  18 

Hardinsburg  formation  in  southern 
Illinois  . 46,54 

Henderson  County,  drilling  in . 16,  18 

Hicks  anticline . 76-77 

Hoffman  anticline .  73 

Horton  Hill  anticline . 76-77 


Jackson  County,  investigations  in.. 

. 16,  17,  39-55,  57-65 

Jasper  County,  drilling  in . 12,  18 

Johnson  County,  investigations  in 

. 16,  19-37 

Junction  City  dome,  oil  in . 15,  70-71 


(79) 


80 


I XDEX — Concluded 


L 

PAGE 

Lawrence  County,  drilling  in..  13-14,  18 


M 

McCormick  anticline . 32-33,35 

McDonough  County,  drilling  in...  15,  18 

McLeansboro  formation  in  Cen- 

tralia  area .  68 

Macoupin  County,  oil  and  gas  in..  14 

Makanda  anticline . 48-49 

Marion  County,  drilling  in . 15,18 

Menard  formation  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  .  36,  46,  55 

N 

New  Burnside  anticline . 32-33,  35 

O 

Oil  in  southern  Illinois . 


...29-37,  47-55,  59-64,  68-73,  77-78 

prices  of,  in  1916 .  13 

production  of,  in  1916 .  12 

Oil  fields,  development  of,  in  1916,  11-18 

Onondaga  limestone  in  southern 
Illinois  .  75 

P 

Palestine  formation  in  southern  Illi¬ 


nois  .  36,  46,  53,-55 

Pike  County,  drilling  in . 16,  18 

Pope  County,  investigations  in,  16,  19-37 
Potato  Hill  syncline .  76 

Pottsville  formation  in  southern 

Illinois  . 23, 

24-28,  36,  37,  44,  49,  53,  55,  58-59,  68 

Pulaski  County,  drilling  in . 17,  18 

R 


Recommendations  for  drilling . 

.  33-35,  53-55,  6T-65 

Renault  formation  in  southern  Illi- 

37,  47 


S 

PAGE 

Ste.  Genevieve  limestone  in  south¬ 
ern  Illinois . 23,  47,  53,  55,  59,75 

St.  Louis  formation  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  . 47,  55,  59,  75 

Saline  County,  investigations  in.... 

. 16,  17,  19-37 

Sandoval  dome . 15,  71-72 

Schuyler  County,  drilling  in . 16,  18 

Shattuc  terrace  .  72 

Silurian  formations  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  .  77 

Sloans  Valley  formation  in  southern 
Illinois  .  46 

Staunton,  gas  at .  14 

Stratigraphy  in  southern  Illinois. . . . 
. 23-29,  43^17,  58-59,  68-75 

Structure  in  southern  Illinois . 

. 29-32,  47-53,  60-63,  69 -73,76 

Sugar  Hill  dome . 60-61 

T 

Tar  Springs  formation  in  southern 
Illinois  . 36,46 

Topography  of  southern  Illinois.... 

.  20-22,  42,  58 

Thebes  sandstone  in  southern  Illi¬ 
nois  .  77 

Tullahoma  limestone  in  southern 
Illinois  .  75 

U 

Unconformities,  significance  of . . .  .52-53 

Union  County,  investigations  in.... 

. 16,  39-55 


W 

Wabash  County  drilling  in . 14,18 

Warren  County,  drilling  in . 16,  18 


Williamson  County,  investigations 
in .  . 16,  19-37,  39-55 


nois 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS-URBANA 


3  0112  121958646 


